Kinship
by Trufreak89
Summary: An unusual school project throws Emily Fields together with fierce rival swimmer, Paige McCullers. What was supposed to be a simple exercise in team work ends up leaving her second guessing everything she thinks she knows about the other girl…
1. Chapter 1

**Title: **Kinship

**Summary: **An unusual school project throws Emily Fields together with fierce rival swimmer, Paige McCullers. What was supposed to be a simple exercise in team work ends up leaving her second guessing everything she thinks she knows about the other girl…

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Pretty Little Liars, or anything related to the show.  
**  
Rating:** M 

"Come on Princess, you're going to have to be quicker than that if you want anchor!" Emily Fields cringed at the teasing voice behind her. She had literally just pulled herself up out of the water and she already had her team captain breathing down her neck. It was only a practise, so it wasn't like she had gone all out for the race; and Paige had only beaten her by about a second anyway. The other girl just liked to rile her whenever she could.

"It's a practise race." Emily turned and glared at her team mate with her arms crossed over her chest. "Trust me, I'll bring my A game when it counts." She tried to stare Paige down using the inch of height she had over her, but the other girl wasn't remotely intimidated.  
"That's the difference between you and me Princess. I'm _always _on my game." She was smirking as she walked away, deliberately knocking her shoulder in to Emily's as she went.

The two seniors were Rosewood High's top swimmers, and as a result they always seemed to be vying for the same spots at meets. Emily had never been that fussed about making anchor, but Paige had started being overly competitive in their Junior year; when Coach Fulton had given Emily the anchor position for one of their meets; between that and the prospect of colleges and scouts, their rivalry had just grown and grown.

It was a relief when the coach finally called time on their practise session. It was a Friday afternoon and Emily was in no mood for putting up with Paige's attitude. Unfortunately their lockers were right next to each other, so she had to deal with her for a little while longer as she changed. She winced as she pulled her tank top on over her head. She'd already trained that morning and she was feeling the burn from how hard she was pushing herself.

The Rosewood Sharks had a big meet coming up and she needed to get her times down. It wasn't just about getting anchor or starter though, there were rumours floating about that there would be scouts at the meet. Emily was an average student at best, but she was an excellent swimmer. A scholarship was her best chance in to college.

"Easy there, Princess." Paige smirked from beside her as she noticed Emily faltering. The other girl was standing in just her jeans and her bra, in no particular hurry to finish getting dressed. The young swimmer had an impressive body; her stomach in particular was as flat as a board and her abs were well toned from years of swimming and running.  
"I told you to stop calling me that!" Emily kept her eyes glued on her locker as she ignored her and pulled on her own jeans. She was tired and cranky and quickly losing her patience with her rival.

"I know you did…_Princess_." Paige winked at her as she finished buttoning up her shirt. She pulled her kitbag over her shoulder and leaned casually against her locker, like she had no place better to be on a Friday afternoon, other than standing around teasing her team-mate. "You should take it easy this weekend; put your feet up-"  
"Go screw yourself Paige!" Emily snapped at her, finally losing her temper as she slammed her locker shut.

Emily could hear the other girl laughing as she stormed out of the locker room. She was still seething when she arrived at Spencer's. The others had all gone to the Hastings' house to study after school and Emily had agreed to meet them once practise was over. Spencer took one look at the swimmer's expression when she opened the door and knew exactly what was wrong. "What did McMonster do this time?" She rolled her eyes as she stepped aside to let Emily through the door.

"I don't want to talk about it." The other girl huffed. She knew if she started talking about all the ways Paige McCullers pissed her off then she would probably never stop. "Are you guys still studying?"  
"We never really started. We're eating ice cream in the kitchen." Spencer led her through to the kitchen where Hanna and Aria were sitting at the table, pawing over gossip magazines. She pulled up a seat beside them as Spencer got her a bowl.

"How was practise?" Aria asked, though she got her answer as Emily slumped down in to her seat and slumped over the table, resting her head on her arms. "That bad, huh?"  
"McCullers." Spencer announced from over by the counter, where she was scooping a tower of ice cream in to Emily's bowl. The other girls nodded in unison. It was hardly a revelation that Paige was behind Emily's sour mood.  
"You should talk to the coach or something about her!" Aria insisted. She had no idea how Emily tattling on her team-mate would sit with the other swimmers. If she narked on Paige then the rest of the team would turn on her too, and things would be ten times worse.

"No. I can handle it." Emily had already decided on how she was going to get Paige off her back; or more accurately, how she was going to put the other girl in her place. She was going to work her ass off to get the anchor position in the next meet. She would show Paige and the scouts just how much she deserved it.  
"I don't get why you two are constantly fighting!" Hanna shook her head as she thumbed through the magazine she was reading. "You two should be like best friends! You've got tons in common! Swimming, girls… swimming!"

"Just because we're both gay doesn't mean we're anything alike!" Emily argued. She had been out since the previous year, when she'd finally stopped trying to pretend she was happy dating boys. Maya St. Germain had turned up in Rosewood and turned her life upside down; being with her had given Emily the strength to come out to her friends and family.

Paige had been out since she was sixteen, though she hadn't really advertised it at school. A few of the girls on the team had known about her, but she'd been a lot more open about it once Emily had come out; especially since the other girl had been so accepted by everyone.

Paige and Emily had never really been friends; though they had been quite amicable to one another in their freshman year. Paige had been a different person altogether back then. She had still been driven and fiercely competitive, but she'd also been quiet and withdrawn. Something of an introvert. That had all changed when she'd come out as being gay. She'd started bonding with the girls on their team a bit more, and she had even made captain in their senior year; though none of that stopped her from being a pain in the ass when it came to Emily.

Hanna was right. They _should _have been friends. They both knew what it was like to try and hide who and what they really were from the rest of the world. Instead of making them closer though, it just seemed to have driven a wedge between them. "I think I'd do Paige, like if I was gay, or I _had _to choose one girl to do it with." Hanna mused, making about as much sense as she usually did.  
"Why would you _have _to sleep with a girl?" Aria frowned.  
"Why McCullers?" Spencer asked, sounding appalled at her choice.

"She's hot, and she's got that whole sexy confidence thing going for her; and it's not like I can choose Em!" Hanna answered as though her reasoning should have been obvious. "She's totally hot too, but we've been friends since forever!"  
"Thanks Han." Emily rolled her eyes at the other girl. She was sure there had been a compliment in there somewhere. "Look guys, I just want to forget about it, okay? Can we just eat ice cream and talk about something other than Paige McCullers?"  
"I'm down with that." Spencer agreed wholeheartedly.  
"I can't. I promised my mom I'd be home for dinner tonight. She's big on the whole family time thing at the moment." Hanna said her goodbyes, giving Emily an extra big hug before she left.

The blonde was driving home when she spotted a familiar bike chained up outside of the brew. Deciding to take matters in to her own hands, she pulled up outside the coffee shop and marched inside. She spotted Paige straight away, leaning casually against the counter as she flirted with some wide eyed redheaded hipster girl. She looked to be a couple of years older than Paige. She was probably a student from Hollis. Rolling her eyes, Hanna walked straight over to Paige and stood behind her with her arms crossed over her chest. The girl the young swimmer was talking to was the first to notice the blonde, and she shot her a scathing look.

Paige looked over her shoulder just in time to catch Hanna slapping her across the face. It was little more than a light tap to her cheek, but it took the other girl by surprise. "What the hell, Hanna?"  
"I could ask you the same thing!" The blonde huffed, glaring daggers at the redhead who had suddenly tried to shrink in to the background. "You swore the cheating was going to stop! I'm not going back to the clinic _again_! Once was enough-" Hanna burst out laughing, unable to keep a straight face as the student picked up her coffee and made a hasty exit out the door.

"I hate you so much right now." Paige shook her head at the blonde as she watched the attractive young woman she'd been chatting to walk out. She rubbed absently at her cheek. "And you slap like a girl!"  
"Would you have preferred it if I'd punched you?" Hanna offered, only half joking.  
"What do you want, Hanna?" Paige didn't bother answering her question, choosing instead to ask one of her own.  
"I'm glad you asked, I need a favour."  
"And I should help you _because_?"

"Because we're lab partners!" Hanna answered as though it should have been obvious. They had been assigned as lab partners for their senior year and they spent a couple of hours a week sharing a desk; but that hardly made them friends and Paige had no idea what the blonde could possibly ask from her.

"What favour?" She sighed, knowing the blonde would never let it drop if she said no.  
"I need you to be nice to Emily." Hanna made the request in the same way as she'd asked Paige to do most of the work on their last science project; as if it were completely reasonable.  
"Hey, I'm _always _nice to her! Has the little princess been telling tales outside of class?" She asked, in a dry sarcastic voice.

"What is it with you two, anyway?" Hanna couldn't understand why the two swimmers couldn't just get along. "Please, Paige! Just be nice to Emily for a while, or at the very least get off her case! She and Maya just broke up and-"  
"And?" Paige interrupted petulantly. "People break up. It happens." She shrugged without any hint of pity or remorse.  
"Please, like _you've _ever had your heart broken." Hanna rolled her eyes at the other girl.

Paige bristled a bit, but said nothing. "Fine, I'll be as nice as I can be to Fields."  
"Nicer!" Hanna snapped. She glared at her to get her point across.  
"Okay, okay!" Paige laughed. "I'll be super nice! I've got to run though, I'll see you at school." She walked out of the Brew with Hanna still calling after her to be nice to Emily.

Paige took the long way home to try and get some extra time on her bike. She was just walking through the front door as her dad was plating up dinner. "Hey Kiddo, how was practise?" He called out to her and Paige followed his voice in to the kitchen. She tossed her wet towel and costume in to the laundry basket as she answered him.  
"It was great. I'm making some good times."  
"That's good. You need to be ready for that next meet if the scouts are going to be there-"

"I know, Dad." Paige tried not to sigh in frustration. She was expecting him to launch in to a full lecture about her responsibilities and what she was expected to do; Paige knew all too well what was expected of her. Sometimes it felt like her whole life was one carefully orchestrated script that she was just blindly following. Every hour of her day, every meal, and every morsel of food was planned out to the last detail.

She had devoted much of her childhood to training in one way or another. First it had been ballet, then soccer and field hockey. She'd joined the swim team her freshman year of high school and, as always, she had wanted to be the best and the fastest. She'd had pretty stiff competition in the form of Emily Fields. The other girl had constantly been snapping at her heels, her times rivaling some of Paige's personal bests.

Things had gotten worse in their sophomore year. One of Emily's best friends had disappeared and her friendship group had pretty much fallen apart. Paige's rival had dealt with her grief, and her solitude, by throwing herself in to her training. She had been impossible to keep up with that year and Paige had been forced to live with being second best. It wasn't a position she liked.

Everything had changed again in their junior year, when Emily's friends had regrouped and she'd first met Maya, her now ex-girlfriend, and the reason she had fallen behind with her training. Maya had been a distraction, something which had led to Emily taking her eye off the prize. Paige had no such frivolous distractions in her life. She had goals to reach and targets to meet; and she wouldn't let some girl get in her way. She moved over to the kitchen table and adjusted a fork that was sitting askew on her place mat. Her father was something of a perfectionist and it had rubbed off on his only child.

"There's some leftover chicken, I'll put it in the fridge for you for later." Nick carried two plates over to the table and sat one down in front of Paige. It was piled with chicken and creamy pasta, full of much needed protein and starch. Paige bowed her head as her father said grace and then they tucked in to their dinner in silence.

The youngest McCullers wasn't feeling all that hungry, so she ended up just moving the food on her plate around with her fork. "Elbows." Her father frowned at her as he looked up and caught her leaning on the table.  
"Sorry." She muttered and sat up straighter in her chair. Nick carried on scrutinizing her from the other side of the table as she picked at her food.  
"Something on your mind?" He could read his daughter like an open book, and he could tell something was troubling her; even if she tried to deny it.

"I'm just wiped out from practise. I think I'll finish this and have an early night."  
Paige pushed her food around her plate for a little while longer, before finally eating the last of her chicken and declaring she was finished. She quickly cleared her plate in to the garbage disposal before her dad could see how little she had actually eaten.

Paige headed straight up to the sanctuary of her room. It was a welcome relief to be able to drop the tiring act that she put on each day. She peeled off her clothes and folded them neatly before hanging them over the back of her desk chair. Her room was just like every other part of her life, neat and methodically arranged. Everything was all squared away and put in its rightful place; from the alphabetized books on her shelves, to the perfectly straight posters hanging on her walls.

Paige changed for bed and padded in to her en-suite bathroom to wash up and brush her teeth before bed. She hadn't been lying about turning in early; she would be up at the crack of dawn to go running, and the teenager needed a full night's sleep to be able to function properly. By the time she walked back in to her room she found a bunch of texts waiting for her on her phone. A few were from girls that had gotten hold of her number, and she skimmed through those, but one from Hanna Marin caught her attention. It was a reminder to be nice to Emily Fields. She scoffed out loud as she tossed her phone aside and flopped down on to the bed.

So what if Fields and her girlfriend had broken up? It wasn't like the other girl particularly went out of her way to be pleasant to Paige, so why should she try and be nice to her? Paige lay in bed with her hands behind her head as she stared up at the ceiling, contemplating just how she was supposed to be nicer towards her rival. Just thinking about playing nice with Fields was giving her a headache. She let her eyes close over and allowed her mind to drift elsewhere, and before long she drifted off completely.

Paige's alarm seemed to go off only seconds after she'd closed her eyes. She felt like she'd barely had any sleep at all. She dragged herself out of bed regardless. Whether she felt like it or not, Paige always went running on Saturday mornings. That was just how things were. She had a schedule and she would stick to it, no matter how crappy she felt. It didn't take her long to get changed in to her running gear. She skipped breakfast, grabbing just a bottle of water from the refrigerator on her way out. Her dad would have a fit if he knew she'd gone out without eating, but she didn't feel like anything; besides, one small act of rebellion a day seemed to do wonders towards helping her keep her sanity.

The morning air was crisp as Paige headed outside. She hadn't picked up a jacket, but she would soon warm up once she got going. Popping in her earphones and cranking up the volume on her iPod, she started off at a light jog before building up her pace. The teenager was practically on autopilot as she let her feet take her on her usual route through the town. Paige loved to run, almost as much as she loved being in the water. There was an alluring freedom to just pulling on her running shoes and taking off in to the woods by herself. She loved the isolation of it, the way she could be herself for once in her god-damned life; even if only for a few hours.

She made her way to the far side of town and slipped in to the woods. The ground was rough and uneven, but Paige was a pro at navigating the familiar trails. She kept moving, letting her feet pound against the dirt until her lungs were screaming in protest. When she finally reached the edge of the lake she dropped to her knees, panting for breath and trying to ignore the tightening to cramp in her legs. The pain was good. It was a reminder that she was alive and not just some kind of robot, destined to blindly follow the plans everyone else had for her.

She spent some time by the water's edge, stretching out and finishing off what was left of her water. Her walk back through the woods was more of a dawdle, as always she was reluctant to leave the place that she felt so at ease in. She could let her mind wander while walking through the trees. The woods at the edge of town were like a safe haven for her; somewhere she could disappear from her responsibilities for a while.

After her run she would head to The Rear Window Brew, her favourite coffee shop, for her usual Saturday morning breakfast of Eggs Florentine with ham, and a tall glass of freshly squeezed orange juice. It was a little after eight when she walked through the door. The Brew hadn't been open all that long, meaning the place was practically empty. Paige loved the coffee shop at that time of the morning. She was always guaranteed to get her favourite table by the window.

There might as well have been a little reserved sign sitting on it since she was there every Saturday without fail. Someone else who was there every Saturday morning was Emily Fields. Paige nodded at her as she slipped in to her seat and brushed back the stray strands of hair that were falling in her face. She was still growing out the bangs she'd decided to have cut in the previous year and they had a habit of falling in her eyes.

Emily nodded back at her as she topped up an elderly man's coffee cup. There were only a handful of customers in the whole place. Most of them were regulars, like Paige. Emily moved behind the counter and in to the back to fetch the plate of ham and eggs that had been sitting in the oven to keep warm. Paige's orange juice was already sitting on her table and she took a big gulp of it, feeling a little dehydrated from her run. She and Emily might not have been anywhere close to being friends, but the other girl was good at her job and treated her Saturday regulars well. Paige seldom had to go to the counter and order, when she walked in her breakfast would already be waiting for her.

"You're late." Emily observed as she sat the hot plate down on the table. She'd carried it over with her apron wrapped over her hand to stop the plate from burning her. Usually Paige would be at the Brew for eight on the dot, but she'd spent longer by the lakeside, catching her breath and contemplating how best to be nice to Fields, like Hanna had asked. Usually she and Emily would exchange few words, but she figured it was best start as she meant to go on.

"My run went a little over." She shrugged as she picked up the salt and pepper shakers that Emily had put on the table ready for her earlier. The young waitress seemed stunned that she had actually replied. Paige could feel the other girl's eyes burning in to her as she went back over to the counter. She silently cursed Hanna Marin and tried to ignore the feeling of being watched as Emily went back to milling around, seeing to her other customers.

She waited until Paige was done before heading back over to her table to pick up her plate and collect her money for the till. Paige always had the correct money on her, so as to avoid having to make small talk waiting for her change. Emily approached her cautiously, obviously still thrown by the other girl's earlier attempt at conversation. "Was everything okay?" She asked as she cleared the table. The part of her job she enjoyed the most was getting to interact with the people who frequented the Brew, and getting to know her regulars; though she'd never bothered to try and engage with her fellow swimmer before. A nod by way of a greeting was usually the best the two girls could manage.

"Everything was perfect, as usual." Paige's response surprised her even more. She was sure her shock was showing on her face as the corners of Paige's lips curled up in to an easy smile. "Don't look so surprised, Fields; I wouldn't come here every Saturday if your cooking sucked _that _much." She teased, unable to help herself. Emily didn't seem to take offence to it though.

"And here I thought it was because we were the only place open." She shot back with a teasing smile of her own. It was possibly the first time she had ever actually smiled at Paige McCullers. Luckily she failed to notice the colour on the other girl's cheeks, or the way she dropped her gaze down to the table. "I'll get you another orange juice." She took Paige's almost empty glass away with her to fill it back up.

Paige was mentally kicking herself as she stared out of the window and tried to get a grip on her racing pulse. She never should have promised Hanna she'd make an effort to be nice to Fields. She was better off just keeping her distance. "Here you go." Emily put the glass back down in front of Paige. She waved off her attempts to pay her. "It's on the house."  
"Thanks, Fields." Paige took a long drink from it, trying to hide her rising discomfort around her team-mate.

She felt an immediate sense of relief as the other girl walked away to see to another customer. Paige finished off her juice in one long drink, desperate to leave. She would usually stay an hour or two while she read the morning papers, but she wanted to get out as quickly as she could. She passed the counter on her way out and tossed some of her loose change in to the tip jar. Emily frowned at her back as she noticed her rushing out.

"How was your shift?" Hanna quizzed later in the afternoon, when Emily had finally knocked off work and shown up at her friend's house to 'study'. Studying without Spencer usually involved watching trash TV, flipping through fashion magazines, and gossiping. Emily dumped her book back on Hanna's bedroom floor, where it would probably remain for the rest of the day.

"The same as usual." Emily shrugged. She flopped down on Hanna's bed beside her and peeked over her shoulder at the very expensive designer dress the blonde was pawing over in the glossy magazine in front of her. "Actually, it was a little different. Paige McCullers actually said more than two words to me today." Emily tried to laugh it off, but something about the other girl's strange behaviour had stuck with her all day.

"Weird…were they _nice_ words though?" Hanna probed, failing miserably to be subtle about it. Emily's suspicions grew as she frowned at her friend.  
"When is McCullers _ever_ nice to me?"  
"Maybe she's turning over a new leaf?" Hanna suggested with a little half shrug. Emily wasn't buying her little-miss-oblivious act though.  
"What did you_ do_ Hanna?"

"What? Nothing! Why would you possibly think I'd said anything to Paige about you?" The blonde tried to act contrite, but it fell flat. She was a terrible liar and her guilt was written plain across her face. It didn't take much more than a stern look from Emily to get the other girl to spill her guts. "Okay, okay! I asked her to be nice to you! I told her you were having a hard time with the whole Maya thing and-"  
"What!" Emily snapped, her anger deepening as she realised what her friend had done. "Why would you do that? Maya and I broke up, it's done! I don't need pity from anybody; especially not Paige McCullers!"

"You were so riled last night and I thought if I just _talked_ to Paige…she's actually not that bad. You two just rub each other the wrong way; in a totally none sexual kind of way!" Hanna quickly added, in case the other girl mistook her meaning. "I was only trying to help!"  
"Well you didn't." Emily snapped harshly. No wonder Paige had practically ran out of the Brew earlier. She had probably sickened herself by being nice to Emily for more than five seconds. "Sorry, Han." Emily sighed as her friend sat on her bed looking deflated. She knew the blonde had been trying to help in her own kind of way, but she would rather have Paige carry on being a bitch to her than have her pretending to be nice out of some kind of pity.

Monday morning saw Emily purposefully walking in to the changing rooms as she sought Paige out. The two girls rarely used the pool to practise at the same time, outside of their scheduled training with the rest of the team, but Emily had a reason to go looking for her. She wanted to set the record straight and undo the damage that Hanna's misguided attempt at kindness had caused. Emily had timed it just right as she caught Paige pulling her jeans on.  
Her hair was still wet and hanging loose around her shoulders as she looked up to meet Emily's eyes. She almost seemed to frown for a second, before she caught herself and offered the other girl a smile that was clearly forced. "Hey, Fields. A little late for practise isn't it?" The first bell was due to go off in less than twenty minutes, hence why Paige had pulled herself out of the water to change. She pulled on a t-shirt, finally covering her top half.

"Hanna told me what she asked you to do." Emily didn't waste time on pleasantries like saying hello. She crossed her arms defensively over her chest. "I'm here to tell you not to bother. I don't need your pity and I don't need you_ pretending_ to like me! So cut the act!" The young swimmer said her piece and waited for Paige's reaction.  
"Who said it was an act, _Princess? _Maybe I _really_ like you." Paige's tone was scathing as usual as she stared the other girl down. She felt an enormous sense of relief at having been found out. She wasn't sure how long she could have kept up being nice to her rival anyway.

"As if you like anyone other than _yourself._" Emily shot back angrily. Hanna was right about the other girl rubbing her the wrong way. Paige McCullers was somehow able to grate on her last nerve without even trying; a single scornful look from her could set Emily off.  
"I like plenty of people, Fields. Just not you!" Paige snapped, finally confirming what Emily had long believed.  
"And why is that Paige? Afraid of a little competition? You've had it in for me ever since Coach started giving me anchor-"  
"I've '_had it in for you'_ since you thought it was okay to just swan back on to this team like you never left! We were _all_ working our asses off last year! While you were mooning over your little pot head girl-" Paige was abruptly cut off as Emily's hand connected with the side of her face.

Her fists instantly clenched at her sides as she recoiled from the slap. She felt her whole body tensing up. Paige had never been very good at controlling her temper and she could feel it bubbling up inside of her, threatening to explode. She was almost relieved as she took a menacing step forward and heard Coach Fulton barking at the pair of them. "McCullers! Fields! My office, now!" Paige managed to swallow her fury back down as she hefted her backpack over her shoulder and stormed ahead of Emily, following the coach in to her office.

Emily brought up the rear, timidly closing the door behind her. She was in a state of shock from slapping Paige. Emily had never slapped anyone before. She had never lost her temper with someone so much that she felt the need to physically lash out; but Paige had struck a raw nerve and Emily's hand had just seemed to take on a life of its own.

Fulton took a seat behind her desk and looked at the two girls expectantly. "Well?" She asked, waiting for an explanation as to what she had just seen. She'd heard their rising voices coming from the changing rooms and had walked in just in time to witness Paige advancing on the other girl. She had missed the slap and mistook the redness of Paige's cheek for anger. "Do either of you want to tell me why two of my best swimmers are standing in the locker room screaming at each other?"

"It was nothing Coach." Paige grumbled. Emily was a little surprised that she hadn't ratted her out for slapping her. She agreed with Paige when she told Fulton that it had just been a simple disagreement and it wouldn't happen again. The middle aged woman didn't seem convinced as she stared at each of them in turn. Emily was practically squirming on the spot. She had never been in trouble at school before, especially not with the coach. Her whole future depended on her getting in to college on a swimming scholarship; she couldn't risk messing that up by being kicked off the team for fighting.

"This isn't exactly a one off." Fulton frowned at the pair. "You two have been at each other's throats for most of the year. We're halfway through the season and we've got scouts coming _specifically_ to see the both of you! You can't afford to screw this up by fighting with each other. You're part of a team, and it's time you started acting like it! Especially you Paige. You're Team Captain, for god's sake! You, more than anyone, need to set an example!"

Emily felt a pang of guilt at the telling off that the other girl was receiving. She had been the one to provoke her. Emily should have been the one getting most of the blame. She tried to speak up, but Paige cut her off before she could get a word in. "I know, Coach. I'm sorry. I'll do better." She hung her head, keeping her gaze down low as she hid her shaking fists behind her back. It was clearly paining her to keep a lid on her attitude, but she would never disrespect her coach by arguing with her; her father had taught her better than that.

"I'm glad to hear it, because I've got the perfect opportunity for the two of you to prove you can work together and be part of the same team." The coach's expression smoothed out in to a knowing smile as she crossed her arms over her chest. She'd already been considering her two stars for the two week extra credit project before she'd walked in on them arguing. What had happened in the locker room had simply cemented her decision. "Report to Ms Montgomery's class after last period. She'll let you know about the assignment and give you the equipment." Neither girl argued about taking on the extra credit. They knew they were both lucky to still be on the team and not be up in front of the principal.

They walked out of the office together, missing the knowing smile that was playing on Fulton's lips as they closed the door behind them. Once they were far enough down the corridor Paige went to storm off, but Emily caught hold of her arm to stop her. The other girl recoiled like she'd been struck again and turned to glare at Emily. "I'm sorry I slapped you." Emily got out a hasty apology as she took a step back from her. "Thanks for not telling Coach, you could have really dropped me in it back there."

"I don't snitch." Paige's scowl seemed to be engraved deep on her face as she stared the other swimmer down. They were around about the same height, give or take an inch, but Paige had more lean muscle on her than the other girl. She took a step forward, getting right up in Emily's face. "I take care of my own problems!" She growled at the shell shocked teen, and allowed the unspoken threat to linger before storming off down the corridor.

She shoved open the door to the girl's bathroom and walked in to one of the stalls before slamming the door behind her and locking it. She slumped down the floor, her back leaning against the side of the stall as she she sat cradling her still stinging cheek. She clenched her eyes shut and counted to ten, trying to keep a lid on the mess of emotions welling up inside of her.

She should never have tried to be nice to Fields. Paige had spent the better part of three years pretty much ignoring the other girl and it had worked out just fine for her, even if Emily wrongly assumed that she hated her. Having her think that was safer than risking her finding out the truth; than having Emily find out how Paige _really_ felt about her. Hate was the last thing on her mind whenever she thought about Emily Fields, and she thought about the other girl all too often.


	2. Chapter 2

"You slapped her?" Hanna exclaimed as Emily filled her and the rest of their friends in on what had happened between her and Paige earlier that morning. It was lunchtime, but Emily was still seething with anger; as well as a little bit of remorse. She hadn't meant to strike Paige. The other girl had just pushed her past her limit.  
"Wow, Em. I didn't think you had it in you." Spencer seemed more impressed than shocked.

"I'm not proud of it, Spence!" Emily grumbled defensively as she looked over at the table Paige was eating lunch at. She was sitting with a few of the other girls from the swim team, as well as some starry eyed freshman girls who were hanging on the star swimmer's every word. "I felt terrible about it! Especially when she took all of the blame with the Coach! Of course it was easier not to feel so bad when she _threatened _me."

"So what do you two have to see my mom about?" Aria asked, once Emily had finally turned away from scowling at her team mate.  
"No idea. Coach Fulton just said it was some extra credit project that would help us 'work as a team'." Emily rolled her eyes, like the notion was utterly crazy. "We've just got to show up at her class after last period. Don't you have any idea what your mom's working on?"  
"Sorry." Aria shook her head apologetically. "I haven't seen her much lately."  
"I guess I'll find out last period." Emily sighed. She was already dreading spending any kind of time working with Paige.

Across the other side of the cafeteria, Paige risked a glance over at Emily's table. She'd been utterly stunned when the other girl had lost her temper and slapped her in the locker room. Emily was usually as timid as a field mouse. Paige had never even heard her raise her voice before, never mind lash out. She knew she was as much at fault for the slap as Emily was. She'd pushed her too far, but that didn't stop Paige from still being angry with the other girl.

She was glaring daggers at the other table as the two freshman girls in front of her rabbited on. One of them, a short brunette with a pretty impressive backstroke, was doing her best to try and catch Paige's attention. Paige was too preoccupied to notice. She was busy thinking about what the extra credit project could be. She already had a full schedule of classes. Along with swim practise and her own training, she simply didn't have time for any extra credit.

"So how about it? Paige?" The girl had apparently asked her something, but Paige hadn't heard a single word she'd been saying. Anyone else would have floundered, but Paige was blessed with the McCullers silver tongue.  
"Sorry, what? I'm a little distracted today." She shot the girl an easy smile, making it seem like _she_ was the cause of Paige's absent-mindedness.

"That's okay." The younger brunette giggled, falling hook, line and sinker for the older girl's act. "I was just asking if you're free this weekend? I've got tickets to that new horror movie that just came out."  
"I'm not too keen on horror movies. Maybe we can do something some other time?" She gave the girl a wink before excusing herself and getting to her feet.  
"Sure." The freshman blushed, too flustered to realise Paige was politely giving her the brush off.

The older swimmer slipped away from the table and headed to the bathroom. She rolled her eyes as she heard the door open again behind her and she realised Hanna had followed her in. "I've got a bone to pick with you, McCullers!"  
"Just one?" She asked dryly, knowing full well that there was a lecture coming from the blonde.

"Exactly what part of 'be nice to Em' translates in to you being a douche?"  
"Me? That's rich." Paige laughed to herself as she shook her head. "Emily slaps _me, _and I'm the one getting the lecture? Typical!"

"Oh, and I'm sure you were being perfectly innocent before she slapped you?" Hanna sneered, not willing to buy in to the other girl's pity party.  
"I might have said something about Maya." Paige grumbled petulantly. "Okay, so I was an ass to her! I'm sorry, but she figured out I was only trying to be nice to her because _you _asked me to and she flipped! I told you I would have been better off just ignoring her! Now I'm stuck doing some stupid project with her!"

"Well you'd better be _extra_ damn nice to her!" Hanna warned. She'd tried to help by asking Paige to be nice to Emily, but the whole thing had blown up in her face, stressing her friend out all the more.  
"Or what?" Paige was almost amused by the blonde's empty threat. She knew she was just trying to do right by her friend, but that didn't mean Paige had to be happy about being dragged in to it.

"Or...I'll set Spence on you!"  
"I'm trembling." Paige shot back with a smirk. She and Hastings had been at each other's throats for years, but Paige was hardly scared of her. The only one of Emily's friends that had ever scared Paige was dead and buried.

Allison Dilaurentis had been Emily's best friend, and the two had always been inseparable. Allison had been the total opposite of Emily; cruel and vindictive, she had made Paige's life a living hell up until the day she had gone missing. Her body had been found in a shallow grave a year later and Paige's field hockey coach, Ian Thomas, had been arrested for her murder. It had come out, after his arrest, that the coach had been having an affair with the fifteen year old, and he'd killed her after she'd threatened to expose it. Paige, like a lot of people in town, hadn't felt all that much sympathy towards the dead teen.

"I'll try, okay?" Paige gave in with a heavy sigh. She was hoping that whatever project Coach Fulton had signed her and Emily up for wouldn't take that long, so she could go back to mostly ignoring the other swimmer. "I can't promise any more than that."  
"Thanks Paige! You're the best!" The over enthusiastic blonde bounced over to her lab partner and threw her arms around her in a bone crushing hug.

"So I've been told." Paige smirked, earning a playful shove from the other girl.  
"Modest as ever McCullers! I've got to run! I'm meeting Caleb in the library."  
"You actually know where the library is?" Paige called after her, laughing at the obscene hand gesture that Hanna tossed back at her.

She managed to avoid running in to Emily or any of her friends for the rest of the day. When the last bell went, signalling the end of the school day, she slowly packed her things up and dragged her feet all the way to Ms Montgomery's classroom. She reached the door just as Emily was walking down the corridor and stepped aside after opening it, allowing the other girl to go in first. "After you, Princess." She ushered Emily in with a sweep of her arm.

The other swimmer rolled her eyes at her, but said nothing. She still felt guilty about slapping Paige earlier, so she bit back the insult she wanted to throw her way and headed inside the classroom. Emily was surprised to find Hanna and Caleb already sitting down at two desks near the back. She made her way over to them and took the empty desk beside Hanna. "Hey Han, what are you doing here?" She asked, noticing with some dismay that Paige had sat down at the desk in front of Caleb.

"Hey Em. Tamborelli caught me and Caleb making out in the library so he said we had to show up here and take this stupid extra class." Hanna sulked.  
"What are we supposed to be doing in here anyway?" Emily frowned as she looked around at the other students littered around the classroom. There were eight other people spread out around the room, but no one that Emily recognised. There were two freshmen, a small group of four juniors by the front and a sophomore couple sitting opposite Emily and the other seniors.

They were an eclectic bunch, all of different ages, with six girls and four guys. Emily couldn't figure out what kind of extra credit class they all could have been enrolled in. Fulton had put her and Paige in the class to help them work together, whereas Tamborelli was using it to punish Hanna and Caleb.

"Maybe it's one of those purity things, where we all get rings and swear to keep it in our pants until we're married?" Caleb suggested, shooting an amused smile Hanna's way. There were a bunch of cases sitting on the desk, but they looked too big just to be for rings.  
"No, they meet on Wednesdays." Hanna dismissed his suggestion. "Besides, it's safe to say that it's a little too late for that for _any _of us. Right, McCullers?"

"Sure." Paige agreed absently. She was busy texting on her phone and only half listening. Emily rolled her eyes in disgust; it was no secret just how many girls Paige had been with. The star of the swim team had no problem in that department.

Paige's phone began to ring just as Ms Montgomery walked in to the class. She knocked it off and pocketed her phone just as Ella cleared her throat. Emily felt sorry for whatever poor girl had been on the other end of the phone.

"Okay guys, settle down." Ella perched against her desk and called for their attention. "Thank you all for signing up for this class; though, as I understand, not all of you volunteered." She smirked at the seniors sitting at the back and Emily ducked her head, wondering what Fulton had told the other teacher about her and Paige. Aria and Emily's moms were close, and Emily didn't want her parents finding out that she'd gotten in trouble for arguing with her team mate. Her mom in particular worried over every little thing and would freak out if Emily had been put in the class as some kind of punishment.

"Now, the seniors are already in their pairs, but the rest of you are free to work with who you want to. The project will run for two weeks and you'll be graded on both your individual effort and your team work-"  
"Miss Montgomery?" Hanna put her hand up, interrupting the teacher.  
"Yes Hanna?" Ella answered, wearing a patient smile. She was more than used to the blonde.  
"What exactly _is_ the project?"

While the other students seemed to have volunteered, the seniors had no idea what they were getting themselves in to. Ella reached behind her for one of the thick black cases. From the way she was struggling with it, it looked pretty heavy. She snapped open the locks and pulled something out, carefully cradling it in her arms.

"Is that a baby?" Hanna shrieked, almost jumping out of her chair.  
"Yes Hanna, that's exactly what this is." Ella beamed as she held the small bundle in her arms up for the rest of the class to see. "To be more precise, it's an Electronic Infant Simulator. This is a Real Care baby. It cries to be fed, to be changed and to be burped; and it's up to you as parents to decide exactly what it needs."

"I think I figured out why Tamborelli volunteered you and Hanna for this class." Paige muttered at Caleb as Ella carried on explaining what they were expected to do.  
"Each care giver will be given a wireless ID like this one." She held up a yellow wristband that looked like a hospital ID bracelet with a thick black watch face attached to it. "It's linked to the monitor on the baby and will store data on how the infants are being cared for by each parent. I can download this information each morning when you drop them off before registration and grade you accordingly."

"Wait, are we meant to take those things home with us?" Paige asked, suddenly paying more attention. Emily looked just as uneasy about the idea.  
"Yes Paige, you are. You'll be expected to care for your baby twenty-four hours a day, with the exception of classes. You can drop them off here each morning and pick them up after the final bell. How you divide the care giving is up to you and your partner, but the ID bracelets will monitor how active you are with them. These simulators are really smart. They'll record how long they're left in their car seats, when they're fed, the temperature they're kept it, and how often their diapers and clothes are changed. All of this will count towards your grade, along with the four one hour sessions we'll be having in class to discuss the social, financial and health issues regarding raising a child-"

"What's the point?" Hanna frowned. She couldn't believe people had actually _volunteered _to take the class.  
"The point, Hanna, is to learn responsibility and teamwork; as well as just how hard all of your parents worked to make sure you made it to your first birthday." Ella's joke got a laugh from the other students. She was a popular teacher, so it was easy to see why she was leading the family planning class; having raised two kids of her own probably helped too.

"Okay guys, pair up! I'm going to hand out the babies and set you all up with your ID bracelets. Remember, your ID is what lets the computer know it's you seeing to the baby, so don't take them off, or mix them up. Each pair gets a baby, two IDs, a car seat, diapers and a selection of clothes." Ella sat one case down on the desk in front of Hanna and another in front of Emily. Caleb and Paige moved their seats so that they were sitting closer.

Paige scowled at the pudgy little baby lying in the case. It looked unnervingly realistic, with its chubby cheeks and button nose. It was bald, with deep brown eyes and soft caramel skin, which was close to the colour of Emily's. Hanna and Caleb's infant had rosy red cheeks and short blonde curls, making Paige suspect that Ms Montgomery had put some thought in to which couple got which baby.

"Oh my god, look at these little booties!" Hanna squealed, more interested in the clothes than the baby. Caleb and Paige shared a look behind her back. Emily ignored them as she cautiously picked up the baby she and Paige had been assigned.  
"It's heavy." She exclaimed, surprised by the weight of the thing as she held it up in front of her.

"_It's_ a girl, and you're holding it wrong." Paige scolded, moving to take the infant from her. She cradled it in her arms, making sure to support its head.  
"Someone's a natural." Ella applauded as she handed over their ID bracelets.

"Is there anything you're_ not_ good at?" Emily muttered bitterly, casting a dirty look Paige's way.  
"Well Princess, if there is then I haven't found it yet." Paige shot back without missing a beat. "So, what are we gonna call her?"  
"Kill me now." Emily rolled her eyes, imagining two weeks of playing house with the other girl.

"I don't think that would look too good on the birth certificate." Caleb teased from other Emily's shoulder.  
"Ooh, dibs on Beyoncé!" Hanna insisted. She was far more excited by the infant simulators than the other three. Caleb frowned at her choice.  
"I hate to burst your bubble, Han, but I think ours is a boy."

They spent the rest of the hour going through the basics of caring for the infants. None of the teens were exactly thrilled to hear that the babies would cry for care and attention twenty-four hours a day. Paige could just imagine what her father would say about having a baby crying in the middle of the night; that was if he didn't kill her for getting in trouble with the coach first.

She was faced with a more imminent problem when Ms Montgomery dismissed the class; who was taking the baby? "Okay, so if you take it tonight I'll get it tomorrow and we can just switch like that for the next two weeks?" Paige suggested, ready to make a quick escape. She was already late for dinner as it was.

"Why do I have to take it first?" Emily argued. Hanna and Caleb were both going back to Hanna's place, so they didn't have to argue over who was stuck with the baby. Caleb was already putting their baby boy in to the car seat while Hanna packed up the clothes and diapers in to their case.

"I've got stuff to do!" Paige objected. She had a ton of studying to do after dinner, as well as fitting in her evening run and a few laps in the pool.  
"I'm sure _she _can wait." Emily shot back cruelly.  
"Hilarious, Fields. You should be a comedian." Paige sulked as she started packing up their baby's stuff. "Fine, how about we toss for it? Heads you take it, tails I do?" She pulled out a quarter from her pocket, ready to toss it.  
"That depends, is that a two sided coin?"  
"Wow, you really think that much of me, huh?" Paige pocketed the coin again, shaking her head at the other girl. "Fine, I'll take the damn doll tonight. You can pick it up tomorrow."

"Paige, wait!" Emily felt a rush of guilt as her team mate stalked out of the class, struggling with the car seat and the heavy black case. She took the case from her, intending to walk her to her car. It was only as they reached the bike rails by the front of the building that Emily realised Paige had come to school on her bike; her guilt increased tenfold.

"I can take the stupid baby home tonight." She suggested, trying to make up for being such an ass back in the classroom. Paige pointedly ignored her as she unlocked her bike. "At least let me drive you home. I don't want to fail this class because you wipe out on your way home. You can put your bike in my trunk." Paige finally gave in and Emily took the car seat from her so that she could push her bike over towards Emily's car.

She secured the baby in the back seat while Paige put her bike in the trunk and then climbed up front. She was still sulking as Emily got in the driver's seat. When she didn't start the car right away, Paige turned to look at the other girl expectantly. "You know, _Princess,_ cars work better when you turn the engine on." Emily bit the inside of her cheek as she ignored the jibe.

"I'm sorry about this morning. I was out of line and I shouldn't have slapped you."  
"No, you shouldn't have." Paige agreed, but after a pause she added, "It was my fault though."  
"Coach is right. If we keep at each other's throats like this then it's going to impact the team. So, we need to work together; starting with _that._" Emily nodded at the infant simulator sitting in the back seat of her car.

"We should probably name it." Paige conceded. "How about Shark?"  
"We're not calling our baby 'Shark'." Emily rolled her eyes at her. "Besides, she's a girl. How about Ariel?"  
"Sure, if you want her to get her ass kicked in kindergarten." Paige sniggered, earning yet another scowl from her team mate. They spent the rest of the ride over to Paige's house arguing over names.

"How about we just call her Paige Junior?" Emily suggested, her voice laced with a heavy sarcasm.  
"Paige Junior…PJ? I like it." Paige laughed at the look of horror on the other girl's face.  
"What? No! Paige, I was kidding!" Emily called after her as she got the baby out of the back."Come on little PJ, time to go meet Grandpa." Paige ignored her protests and shot Emily a wink. "See you in the morning, _Princess_!"  
"Stop calling me that!" 

* * *

**A/N:**_Thanks to everybody for reading and for the great feedback __for the first chapter__. I'__ve already got a few chapters written up, and I'__m planning to try and update __weekly__. __Also, __I'm English, so __I've had to do some research on American High Schools and Parenting classes. From what I've read, students usually only get the dolls over the weekend, but for this fic to work I've had to make the project two weeks; let's face it, people in Rosewood could use as much parenting practice as they can get ;) _


	3. Chapter 3

"What the hell is that?" Nick McCullers frowned at the car seat sitting on his kitchen table.  
"That's your new granddaughter. Congratulations Pops." Paige grinned as she helped herself to a diet soda from the fridge.  
"You know, when you told me you were gay, I figured I wouldn't have to worry about any teenage pregnancies." Nick remarked dryly. "So who's the father? I'll need to know for when I break his legs."  
"Uh, I guess that would be Emily Fields." Paige answered reluctantly.

"Emily from your swim team?" Nick frowned.  
"Yeah, we're doing this extra credit project thing together-"  
"Extra credit? Are you failing your classes?" Paige's father instantly jumped to conclusions. Other than one 'C' in Trig she'd kept a consistent B+ average throughout her senior year. She didn't need to worry about getting extra credit to graduate.

"No Dad, my grades are fine. Coach just wanted us to take the class… We don't really get on all that well. I guess Coach Fulton figured this stupid parenting class would help us work together or something." Paige shrugged, trying not to make a big deal out of it.

"Can she do that? Maybe I should call the school-"  
"Dad, its fine!" Paige insisted. "You don't have to call anyone! It's just for two weeks, okay? I can handle it." The robot baby chose the right time to start crying, giving Paige an excuse to walk out of the kitchen with it. She changed its diaper and fed it from its plastic bottle until it fell silent again. Looking after the baby would be the easy part of the two week project; working with Emily would be the real test.

Paige took the baby and its things upstairs to her room. She emptied out her sock drawer before lining it with a towel and placing baby PJ inside. She covered it with a blanket to keep warm before heading back downstairs to join her father for dinner. "I hope this extra credit thing isn't going to affect your other classes, or your swimming! You've got a big meet coming up and scouts to think about-"

"It won't, Dad. I'll make sure of it." Despite Paige's reassurances, Nick spent most of dinner probing her on how school was going and reminding her of all of her commitments. By the time they'd finished eating, and Paige had washed up, she was ready to make her escape.

She headed upstairs to change in to her running gear. It was only as she was walking out of her room that she heard the baby crying and remembered why she couldn't go out running.

"Damn it." She muttered to herself. Paige hated being cooped up inside when she was aggravated. Running wasn't just a way of her keeping in shape, it helped in clearing her head too. Picking up the baby, she cradled its head as she carried it downstairs. She found her father sitting with his feet up in his favourite recliner, reading the evening paper. "Hey Dad, want to do me a favour-"  
"Nope." Nick cut her off before she could finish asking. "I already did my bit raising you kiddo."

"Come on Dad, I just need an hour to go running!" Paige pleaded, but her dad was having none of it. He started lecturing her on her responsibilities. She had to skulk back upstairs with the baby in tow. Putting it back down in the sock drawer sitting on her desk, she flopped on to her bed. She picked up one of her books, intending to study, but she couldn't concentrate.

Paige felt restless and agitated. Eventually she tossed the book aside and picked up her phone. "Hey Hanna, can you do me a favour and send me Emily's number? What? _Yes, _I promise to be nice."

Ten minutes later Paige was pulling up outside of Emily's house. She'd borrowed her dad's car to drive over after calling the other girl to ask her to babysit. Emily had agreed, only because she had work the next night and wanted Paige to take the baby while she was working. Their 'simple' solution to dividing the child care seemed to have some serious flaws. They would need to work out some kind of schedule that they could both stick to.

Emily was sitting on the porch waiting for her when Paige pulled up. She cut the engine and got the car seat out of the back. "Hey, thanks for this Fields. I shouldn't be more than an hour."  
"No problem. You're still okay to take it while I'm working tomorrow, right?"  
"Sure. Five till nine, I got it." Paige tried to make a quick retreat back to her car. She was itching to get started on her run, but she'd have to take the car back first.

"Hey, why don't you leave your car here? You're coming back for the baby anyway." Emily suggested. Paige had to admit it made more sense than her driving home and coming back again. She got her iPod out of the car before locking it up and starting her run; leaving Emily holding the baby.

She stared down at it blankly, not quite sure what to do with it. "Mom!" Emily took the carrier inside as the baby started crying. She'd already explained the extra credit project to her parents, so her mom wasn't surprised when she walked in to the kitchen carrying a baby. "Emily, you're not holding her head right! Pass her here!" Pam ushered her over and took hold of the baby, cradling its head as she held it close.

"Mom, you do know it's a doll right?" Emily scowled. Paige had told her the same thing about holding the baby's head earlier.  
"Do you think you'd still be breathing if you brought a real baby in to this house at your age?" Pam shot her a scathing look that told Emily the answer was a very definite 'no'. "I'm too young to be a grandma…yet."  
"That's the closest you'll get." Emily muttered quietly under her breath. "So Mom, you two look pretty good. Would you mind looking after baby PJ until I finish studying?"

"Nice try, Emily." Pam handed the baby back over to her daughter. "I thought the McCullers girl was having her tonight?"  
"She is. She just needed me to watch her for a couple of hours while she goes running. Then she's having her while I'm working tomorrow. Paige and I kind of need to figure out a proper schedule." Emily sat the baby back in the carrier and took a seat at the kitchen table to finish off her homework.

"Paige is a nice girl." Pam observed, trying to sound casual about it. "I heard she's…" She trailed off, struggling to finish her sentence.  
"On the swim team too?" Emily suggested, knowing full well what her mother was trying to get at Pam hadn't taken Emily's coming out very well, but she had grown to accept her daughter's sexuality. "Paige…isn't my type mom. We don't really get on. That's why Coach Fulton made us do this stupid project together. Thank god it's only for two weeks!"

"I didn't know you had a problem with the McCullers girl." Pam frowned, concerned by the sudden revelation. She didn't like the idea of Emily not getting along with one of her team mates.  
"I don't!" Emily started getting defensive. "Paige is the one who has a problem with me! She's always on my case! Everyone else thinks she's so great, but she's a complete pain in the...neck." The teenager was careful not to curse in front of her mother.

"Emily." Pam scorned her anyway. "You should make more of an effort with Paige. She's not as lucky as you are."  
"What do you mean by that?" Emily frowned, having no idea what her mom was trying to suggest.  
"I suppose Nick did his best raising her, but it's just not the same..." Pam answered, still making no sense what so ever to the teenager.  
"The same as what?"  
"Having a mother of course."

"Paige doesn't have a mom?" It was news to Emily. She was sure she'd seen a woman with Nick McCullers at a few of the Sharks' swim meets, she'd just assumed it was Paige's mom.

"Well, we shouldn't gossip..." Pam started, though from the look on her face she was clearly dying to tell Emily the full sordid story. "Her mom left Paige and her father when the poor girl was barely a month old! Can you imagine leaving a baby at the age?" Pam shook her head in disgust as Emily silently took in the unexpected revelation.

"I heard she had a problem with drugs. Every girl needs a mother, but Paige is better off without her if you ask me." Emily's mom carried on, oblivious to the fact that the teenager was no longer listening to her. She was too wrapped up in her own thoughts. Paige's mom being a drug addict went a long way towards explaining her dislike of Maya. Paige hadn't really known her, yet she pretty much despised Emily's ex; it had to be the drugs.

Emily felt her guilt growing inside of her. She had no idea about Paige's home life. She'd never had a reason to be curious before, but now that she was stuck with the other girl for two weeks she found herself wanting to know more about her fellow Shark. She finished her homework downstairs at the kitchen table and waited for Paige to come back from her run.

She was only gone for about an hour, but she seemed more relaxed when she came back to pick up the baby. Emily on the other hand was anything but. The robot baby hadn't stopped crying for the entire time she'd been looking after it. She'd struggled to focus on her homework while seeing to the screaming infant.

The second Paige stepped foot on the front porch, Emily bundled the baby back in to the car seat and gathered her things up before rushing to the door. She couldn't get rid of it quick enough. "Paige, thank god! Your turn." She breathed a sigh of relief as she handed everything over to the bemused girl.

"What did you do to little PJ? I don't think she cried the whole time I had her." Sure enough, the infant stopped crying straight away.  
"Great, it just hates _me_." Emily rolled her eyes as Paige started laughing at her.

"Don't be so hard on yourself Fields, kids just love me." Paige shot back with a confident smirk. She turned serious again as she started talking about what they were going to do about the baby long term. "So, I was thinking we should compare our schedules, figure out a game plan. Obviously we both have swim practise. You've got work, I've got running."  
"Okay, how about I meet you at the pool before your morning practise and we can figure this out?"

Paige was glad Emily had suggested meeting at the school pool. The natatorium was like their no man's land, a neutral place they could usually manage to be civil towards each other for more than five minutes at a time.

Paige woke up early the next morning to make sure she could get in a few laps in her own pool at home, before heading to meet Emily for seven. Baby PJ had slept soundly for most of the night, save for a couple of times when she'd cried for a diaper change.

The pool was deserted as usual. Few of the girls made the same kind of effort to come in early and practise before school. Most of them practised after school, including Emily, so Paige usually had the place to herself. This time though, Emily was waiting for her by the team bench. She was dressed casually in jeans and a navy blue Sharks hoodie, with her hair tied back.

The other girl looked half asleep as she sat curled up on the bench with one of her study books in her hand. There were two Styrofoam cups on the bench in front of her and the scent of fresh, hot coffee was unmistakable.

"Hey, I got you some coffee." Emily looked up and caught Paige making her way towards her, She held out the cup with a sleepy smile. Paige felt a flutter in her chest as she took a sip and realised the coffee was perfect. A moment later she remembered that Emily had been working at the Brew and making her coffee every Saturday morning for months, it wasn't surprising that she remembered how she took it.

"Thanks." Paige nodded at her. She took a seat on the bench, placing the baby carrier in between them. She dug in to her bag and pulled out a copy of her schedule as Emily did the same.  
"Is this laminated?" Emily eyed Paige's schedule sceptically. It was organised in to seven days and subdivided in to thirty minute time slots.

There was everything on it, from the time she would eat her meals to her Saturday morning run and the free hours she would spend at the Brew. Emily's schedule, in contrast, was just a piece of paper with her work hours on it and two swim practises scheduled after school. "Wow, you should have a kid with Spence..."

"Is this written on the back of a receipt?" Paige chose to ignore the other girl's teasing as she scrutinized her schedule. "How the hell do you do it?"  
"Do what?" Emily frowned, puzzled by the strange question.  
"This!" Paige waved her hand in Emily's general direction. "You! You're like _perfect_ and it's some kind of happy accident!" Paige couldn't believe how lax the other girl's approach to her training was. Every meal in Paige's life was carefully planned out for optimum nutrition and every free hour she had went towards swimming or running. She was constantly working her ass off to keep in shape, and yet it didn't seem like Emily had to do much at all.

"Okay...I'm not sure whether to be offended or flattered." Emily replied sharply, genuinely unsure whether Paige had just insulted her or not. "I think we can stick with having the baby alternating days. If you have her on my days when I'm working then I'll take her when you're training. It should work out about even."  
"Great; oh, I need you to have her for a few hours Saturday night. I've got plans."  
"Couldn't you just rearrange for Friday night? I'm sure your date wouldn't mind." Emily teased, not wanting to sacrifice her Saturday night just so that Paige could get laid.

"It's not like that!" Paige huffed, sick of Emily presuming things about her. "I've just got family stuff Saturday night, okay? Can you take her or not?"  
"I guess I don't have a choice." Emily gave in with a roll of her eyes and an exaggerated sigh. "Let's just drop the baby off at Ms Montgomery's room. I'll pick her up after class and drop her by your house before work."  
"Don't bother coming over. I'll move my run forward an hour and come pick her up from the Brew before you start."

With their plan in place the two girls parted ways. Emily took baby PJ to Ms Montgomery's class on her way to the home room, while Paige went off to do her own thing. "Hi Emily, how's it going?" Ella greeted her as Emily walked in with the crying baby. It had started the second Paige had walked off.  
"Okay, I guess. Paige had it last night, so it's my turn today."  
"It?" Ella raised an eyebrow at the teenager's turn of phrase as she took the robot infant from her. "Haven't you and Paige decided on a name for her yet?"  
"Oh, yeah. We're calling her Paige Junior; PJ for short."

"And how are you and Paige getting along? I know this might seem like a punishment, but it's a great opportunity to take on a little responsibility and have some fun doing it." Emily had always liked Ms Montgomery, she had the same energy and outlook as Aria; always trying to make the best out of a bad situation. Emily couldn't really see how looking after a robot baby, with Paige McCullers of all people, could actually be fun.  
"We're comparing schedules and stuff. I guess this project could help us work together a little better; but to be honest, it's not like we're suddenly going to be best friends."

"You know Emily, I was surprised when Coach Fulton asked me to add you to the project. I've always known you to be so good at working with others. Is there some history between you and Paige that you want to talk about?"  
"What? No!" Emily didn't want the older woman thinking for a second that there was anything going on between her and Paige. Emily wasn't one of those witless girls who fell hook, line and sinker for Paige's charms. "There's no history there. We just don't get along. She's been at my throat ever since I came back to the Sharks last year."

"Well, maybe Paige feels threatened by you?" Ella suggested, trying to find a cause behind the friction between the two girls.  
"Threatened by me?" Emily scoffed. She found it pretty hard to believe that the super confident Paige McCullers could feel threatened by anyone. "We're hardly in competition. I'm not interested in any of those bimbos she dates and I don't want to be team captain. I just want to swim, that's all."

"And have you told Paige this?" Ella quizzed, probing the same way that Aria would.  
"I have to get to class." Emily dismissed the teacher's attempts at an impromptu therapy session. She didn't need to tell Paige anything. The other swimmer could either get over her insecurities and start acting like a team captain, or she could carry on being a jerk. Emily could care less either way; they only had to work together for two weeks anyway.

"Hey Mrs M!" Emily was saved from any more probing questions as Hanna flounced in to the room carrying her infant simulator on her hip. "One baby girl, ready for daycare!" The blonde seemed to be really taking to motherhood.  
"Thank you Hanna. I'll see you girls after class."  
"Oh, Caleb's going to be picking Beyonce up. I'm having a girls' day with Mona later. Momma needs some me time."

"You've had that thing one night!" Emily laughed as they were on their way out.  
"So? Caleb's a very hands on dad; and he knows he won't get any if doesn't take the baby tonight." Hanna grinned smugly.

"I'm not so sure that would work with Paige." Emily rolled her eyes and adjusted her bag as she rifled through it for her copy of the other girl's schedule. She wanted to ask Hanna to study with her Thursday night, but she needed to check if it clashed with Paige's training.  
"It might." Hanna shrugged, only half teasing. "Maybe that's all you two need? To clear the air-"

"Ew." Emily objected. "I'm not _sleeping_ with Paige McCullers!"  
"Maybe you should try it...then you wouldn't be so cranky." Hanna muttered under her breath as Emily's back was turned.  
"I mean, if she was sleeping with guys she'd get called a slut; but because it's girls it's like she's some big player!" Emily carried on grumbling, oblivious to the way the blonde was shaking her head at her.

"Okay, we need to get you dating again!" Hanna announced, interrupting her friend's ranting.  
"What? No, Hanna. I'm not ready for that yet."  
"Not ready for what?" Aria quizzed as she and Spencer joined the other girls by Hanna's locker.

"Dating. We need to get Emily hooked up!" Hanna answered, choosing to ignore Emily's objections altogether. "I've got Caleb, Spence has Toby and Aria's practically married off. Em needs to get back in the dating game!"  
"Han, she's eighteen, not forty; besides, Em's only been single for a couple of months." Spencer stuck up for her friend, much to Emily's relief.

"Thank you Spence! Maya and I only just broke up. I'm just not ready to move on. Now, can we please stop talking about my love life?"  
"No, I definitely prefer talking about yours." Aria teased. The girls were usually talking about Aria's relationship with their English teacher, Ezra Fitz; so it was a nice change for them to be discussing someone else's love life for once.

"Well I don't!" Emily snapped. Maya had been her first girlfriend and she hadn't taken their breakup very well. Their relationship had hit rocky waters when Emily's mom had found drugs in Maya's bag. She'd told the other girl's parents on her, and Maya had been shipped off to True North, a youth correctional camp. She'd met a guy there and had ended up cheating on Emily with him. They'd tried to reconcile their failing relationship over the summer, but it hadn't worked and Maya had simply given up on trying; the rejection had seriously hurt her, and Emily was still trying to deal with it.

"Let's have a date night Saturday?" Spencer suggested, trying to cheer Emily up. "Just the four of us! No boyfriends or weird robot babies."  
"I'll get back to you on that. Paige needs me to watch the baby for a few hours."  
"Oh, PJ & Beyonce could totally have a play date!" Hanna squealed with excitement.

"How can you be so excited about these things? I had the baby for an hour last night and _all_ it did was cry!"  
"Beyonce is _very_ well behaved!" Hanna answered matter of factly, to which Emily just rolled her eyes; trust Hanna to be one of _those _kind of mothers.


	4. Chapter 4

_**A/N:**__Thanks again to everyone who's reading and for the awesome reviews! __I've been working on this for a while, in between working on other projects, so I started out with the first 6 chapters already done. I'm planning on posting daily until I reach chapter 6, after that updates will probably be weekly._

* * *

"You're late!" Emily snapped as Paige finally walked through the front door of the Brew. It was only a few minutes after five, but Emily's shift had already started and she had baby PJ sitting in her carrier on the counter. Luckily her boss was pretty easy going and he had just laughed when Emily had turned up with the doll.  
"Sorry! Sorry! I lost track of time!" Paige hastily apologised. Her cheeks were flushed from running and she had to lean against the counter to catch her breath. "Can I grab a diet coke?"

"You're staying?" Emily couldn't keep the surprise out of her voice. She rarely ever saw Paige at the Brew, other than for her ritual Saturday morning breakfast.  
"Yeah, I am. Awesome customer service there, Fields." Paige laughed as she picked up baby PJ's carrier and headed to find a table.

"McCullers!" Caleb called her over from one of the sofas. He was sitting with his laptop on the table in front of him and he closed it over as Paige took a seat beside him. She took PJ out of the carrier and propped her up on the sofa, knowing they would be marked down if the baby spent too much time in the car seat.

"Emily got you playing mommy today? I bet that's killing your game." Caleb teased.  
"Not really." Paige smirked and nodded towards a girl that had just smiled at her on the way over to the register. Caleb shook his head in amusement. "What about you? Where's baby Beyonce?"  
"Uh, Hanna's got the doll."

"I thought Hanna said you were having it today?" Emily walked up to the table with Paige's coke and called Caleb out on the lie.  
"I was...but then Hanna changed her mind about going out."  
"_Hanna_ changed her mind about shopping?" Emily didn't sound convinced.  
"Yeah...she decided to stay in and dress the baby up." Caleb recovered quickly with a plausible answer, but Emily was still dubious.

Before she could question him further though, a tall blonde girl walked over to the table, trying to catch Paige's attention. "Hey Paige. Are we still on for Friday night?" The blonde was wearing a ridiculously low cut top and leaning forward to emphasise her 'assets'. Emily rolled her eyes at the girl's desperation, which didn't go unnoticed by Paige.  
"Sure, I'll pick you up at seven. See you then, Brandy."

"Brandy?" Caleb cracked up the second the blonde walked off. Paige frowned as she socked him on the arm.  
"What? _I _didn't name her, did I?" She huffed defensively.  
"So Friday is why you can't move Saturday huh?" Emily couldn't believe she had actually fallen for the other girl's lie about having family stuff Saturday night. She stalked off before Paige had a chance to open her mouth to explain.

"Man, Emily _really_ doesn't like you." Caleb shook his head in sympathy for a floundering Paige as she stared after the other girl. "I've never seen her act like that with someone. Ever. Emily's supposed to be the _nice _one."  
"Yeah, I think I have a better chance of being friends with Hastings right now." Paige sighed. She pulled herself up from the couch to go and explain herself to Emily. It wasn't like she _owed _the other girl an explanation, but she wanted her to know how wrong her assumptions were. "Here, babysit for me." She took off her ID band and tossed it at Caleb. Emily was mad at her enough already without adding child abandonment to her list of wrong doings.

Paige walked up to the counter and leant against it as Emily pointedly ignored her. "Hey Princess." Paige knew the nickname would do nothing but goad the already ticked off teen, but it did get Emily to look up at her; even if she was glaring. "I wasn't lying about Saturday night. I've got family stuff."  
"Okay." Emily shrugged, and that was about all Paige got out of her. Taking the hint, she went back over to her table to join Caleb again.

"Did you like kill her puppy or something?" Caleb teased as Paige sat back down beside him. He hadn't ever seen Emily so riled by anyone and it wasn't exactly the first time. Most days Paige didn't even need to open her mouth to tick Emily off.  
"Close enough...It's nothing I don't deserve. I've been a jerk to her for the last couple of years." Paige admitted with a heavy sigh.  
"It's not too late to change that. Emily's a good person, if you put in the effort she'll come around-"

"I don't want her to be my friend." Paige answered honestly. "She can just carry on hating me."  
"You don't really believe that, do you?" Caleb frowned, but he didn't have a chance to carry on as Mona and Hanna walked in to the Brew. The pair of them were weighed down with shopping bags, but Hanna and Caleb's robot baby was noticeably missing.

"Uh Han, did you leave something in the car?" Paige held up baby PJ to emphasise her point as Hanna just stared blankly at her. Her eyes widened as she realised her mistake.  
"Oh...my mom has it."  
"Really? My dad laughed when I asked him to take care of PJ."  
"My mom did too." Emily chipped in as she joined her friends at their table. "Hey Han, Mona, what can I get you guys?"

"I'll have your precious little bundle!" Mona cooed as she took PJ from Paige and started talking to it like it was a real baby.  
"Sorry Mona, Emily's quite attached to me; you can have the doll though." Paige joked.  
"You're welcome to them both." Emily shot back in answer to Mona's question, deliberately ignoring the wounded look Paige was sending her way.  
"Ouch Princess, two days and you're already calling it quits on our little family? Think of the damage a single parent family could do to our child." Paige tried to keep a straight face, but she couldn't help cracking a smirk as Emily's grip tightened on her notepad.

"Paige, can I talk to you for a second?" She growled out, not really giving the other girl an option as she took hold of her wrist and dragged her to her feet. She led her over to the counter and all but pushed her through the door marked 'employees only'.  
"I don't think I'm supposed to be back here." Paige pointed out. "Or_ anywhere _alone with you when you're looking at me like that." Emily was fuming, the other girl could see it in her eyes. Paige had just been trying to push her buttons, not get herself killed in the store room of the Brew.

"You can be as mean as you want to me, Paige. I honestly don't care! Just lay off the single parent jokes around Hanna, okay?" The reason behind Emily's anger took Paige by surprise, she hadn't expected her to come out with what she had, so it took her a second to regroup.

"Hanna doesn't give a crap about that stuff." She tried to laugh it off and walk past Emily to leave, but the other girl stopped her in her tracks as she caught hold of her arm painfully tight. Paige's fists clenched in response as her body tensed for an attack, but she forced herself to keep her cool as she counted to five in her head. Had it been anyone else, she probably wouldn't have been able to stop herself from lashing out.

"You really want to get your damn hands off of me, Fields." All of her joking and good humour had vanished the second Emily had grabbed her. Noticing the shift, she quickly released Paige's arm, and crossed her own over her chest.  
"Hanna's dad left her and her mom, she doesn't talk about it, but it still hurts. She doesn't need to hear any single parent wise cracks from you, okay?"

"I know all about Hanna's dad." It was Paige's turn to become defensive. "Just like she knows my about my mom; so don't lecture me on not knowing anything about Hanna, not when you don't know the first damn thing about me!" She shoved past Emily, almost stalking out of the Brew until she remembered about PJ.

"Everything okay?" Hanna quizzed as Paige headed back over to the table and snatched up her stuff.  
"Everything's fine. I need to get home for dinner. I'll see you guys around." She reached the door just as Emily was walking out of the store cupboard. The other girl had the good grace to keep her head down until Paige was gone.

Emily had well and truly put her foot in things. She had forgotten all about what her mom had told her about Paige's mom leaving them, she had been so busy trying to protect Hanna that she had wound up hurting Paige.

"Hey gorgeous!" Paige looked up from where she was trying to jab her key in to the door of her dad's car to see an older woman approaching her. She was a little taller than Paige, with dark auburn hair that was tied back in a simple plait.  
"Hey." Paige furiously wiped at her face, trying to hide the tears that had started welling up in her eyes. She wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone. She flinched as the other woman wrapped her arms around her from behind and planted her chin on her shoulder.  
"What's up with you, grumpy pants?"  
"Nothing." She pulled away as she finally got her key in the lock. "It's just been a long day."  
"Okay...and what is that?"

"That is your new niece." Paige held PJ up to give the other woman a closer look. "Congratulations Aunt Sara, it's a girl!"  
"Wow." Paige's aunt screwed her face up at the doll. "I figured we wouldn't have to worry about unplanned teenage pregnancies when you came out last year."  
"That's what dad said." Paige laughed, her mood starting to lift. "Do you need a ride home? Where are the boys?"

"Josh is with his deadbeat dad. He actually showed up for his custody visit this time. Your dad's got Nathan."  
"He's looking after Nathan, but he wouldn't look after _my_ baby?" Paige grumbled as the two of them climbed in to her car. Josh and Nathan were her two cousins. Josh was the oldest at seven and Nathan was six months. Sara and the boys' dad had split up not long after their youngest child had been born; he'd only seen them a handful of times since.

"I think real baby trumps fake baby." Sara countered. "So who's your baby daddy? Has your dad kicked his ass yet?"  
"It's Emily Fields. She's on my swim team. The coach thinks it'll be a good project to get us working together." Paige rolled her eyes. Fulton had to be crazy to think she could force the two girls to be friends.

"Oh yeah, because nothing pulls two people closer together than a screaming baby...Emily. Wait, is that the girl you used to talk about _all _the time in freshman year?" Sara teased. She didn't miss the way Paige shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

"Different Emily."  
"Really? Because I'm sure that one was on the swim team too... and was called Fields."  
"Can we just drop this?" Paige snapped, her temper already short from her confrontation with Emily. "Freshman year was a long time ago. People change."

What had happened between her and Paige ended up playing on Emily's mind for the rest of her shift, long after the others had all gone home and the Brew had emptied out. Tuesday nights were always pretty quiet, but the light rain that had started earlier in the evening had put off most of the potential customers. The place was empty when the little bell above the door sounded just before nine. Emily was almost surprised to see Paige walking in with the baby.

She had showered and changed out of her running gear. Her hair was still wet and she had brushed it back in to a messy ponytail. "Hey. You look like you're about to catch your death. Would you like some tea?" Emily's guilt was eating away at her. She knew tea wasn't going to fix her and Paige's strained relationship, but it was a good start.  
"I'm good. I should get back, I've got a big test tomorrow." Paige put the baby carrier down on the closest table to the door and tried to walk out, but Emily wasn't about to give up so easily.  
"Stay. Please?"

Paige hovered by the door, torn between staying and walking out without a second look. She had been angry at Emily earlier, but once she had cooled down a bit she had been more angry with herself. Her reaction had been out of proportion. She shouldn't have said anything to Emily about her mom. It was no secret that Paige's mom had walked out on her and her dad when she'd still been a baby.

She could see the pity in the other girl's eyes and she hated it. She didn't want Emily feeling sorry for her. "I'm so sorry about what I said earlier. I didn't know about your mom-"  
"Apology accepted." Paige answered, her tone a little too sharp. "Got any chamomile?" She took a seat at one of the stools by the counter, trying her best to meet Emily halfway.

"Plenty." Emily smiled as she went back behind the counter and started making a fresh pot. While she was waiting for it to boil she changed the sign on the door so that is said closed. Emily filled two cups and handed one over to Paige as she took a seat on the stool next to her. "I think coach Fulton is right. We really do have some issues to work on."  
"Just a few." Paige cracked a smile of her own as she agreed with the other girl. Taking a deep breath and a sip of tea, she considered her next words carefully.

Her aunt had been right. She had spoken non-stop about Emily in their first year of high school. She had doted on the other swimmer, admiring her talent and longing to be her friend; but a lot had changed between then and senior year. Paige's attempts to push Emily away, to make sure they weren't anywhere near being close, had been deliberate; but that didn't mean a big part of her didn't secretly want Emily to make the effort to try and be her friend. "Look, I know it's my fault that we're not friends and that you hate me-"

"I don't hate you." Emily corrected her. "I just don't _know_ you. I'd like to change that...I'd like to see the person that everybody else sees. Hanna thinks the world of you and she's usually a pretty great judge of character; but it's going to take more than a day of you being nice to me and a fortnight of playing house, for me to see what she sees in you."

Paige was torn inside. Her heart literally felt like it was being pulled apart as she considered the other girl's offer of friendship. She had worked so hard to push Emily away over the years. She had been an ass, calling her out on everything and constantly riding her back at practise. She had pushed and taunted her to the point of almost bullying the other girl, yet Emily was willing to give her a second chance. Caleb was right, Emily was a good person. She had the biggest heart of anyone that Paige knew; and it was one of the reasons Paige had been desperately in love with her for so long.

"Maybe we should just start with these two weeks and see how it goes? Thanks for the tea." Paige got to her feet, knowing if she didn't leave right then she would stand there and spill her deepest secret to the one girl she couldn't afford to let get too close. Emily could never know how she felt about her. She just couldn't.  
"Oh. Okay then."

Paige saw the disappointment in Emily's eyes. She had thought the two of them were finally getting somewhere, but Paige had shut her down and locked her out. Her heart was breaking as she headed to door, only pausing long enough to toss back over her shoulder, "See you around, Princess."


	5. Chapter 5

"Paige McCullers is an ass." Emily huffed and flopped down on to Hanna's bed as her friend fussed over which outfit to wear. It was early Wednesday morning and Emily had driven over to Hanna's with baby PJ to pick up the blonde and her robot baby.  
"Tell me something new." Hanna rolled her eyes. She really didn't get what Emily's problem was with the other swimmer.  
"She came back to the Brew last night to drop off PJ, and we were getting along fine, but then she had to go ahead and ruin it by being a big jerk!"

"You do know you're the only one in the entire school who has a problem with Paige, right? And, before you say it, Spencer doesn't count!"  
"Maybe I'm the only one who sees through her act!" Emily protested, sick of feeling like the bad guy with her friend when it came to the other girl.  
"Okay, maybe you're right. Maybe Paige puts on a big act and only you can see it; or _maybe _Paige just uses her act on _you." _Hanna suggested, making a surprising amount of sense at such an early hour.

"Why would she put on an act around me though?" Emily quizzed, suddenly doubting everything she knew about Paige. It was true that the other girl hadn't been a total nightmare for the three days they'd been stuck raising PJ together. There had been times when she had almost been nice, but Emily just couldn't think of a reason why she would act one way around her and another way around everybody else.

PJ started crying before Emily could get her answer and she had to go through the routine of changing its diaper, offering it a bottle and burping it before the doll finally shut up again. "Why does yours _never_ cry?" Emily demanded as Hanna carried on applying her make up while her baby sat soundly in its carrier. "And who had it last night? There's no way your mom would watch that thing while you went shopping!"

"Caleb hacked it, okay?" Hanna sighed as she finally gave up her secret.  
"Caleb _hacked _your baby?" Emily frowned, finding the mental image pretty disturbing. "Ella is totally going to fail you!"  
"She won't find out! Caleb's hacked the program so it looks like we're feeding her and changing it whenever it needs it and we're waking up a couple of times a night too. He's added in a couple of blips so we don't look too perfect. We should get a nice B!" Hanna announced cheerily, causing Emily's frown to deepen all the more.  
"That's so unfair! I actually _was _up at four am with this thing! I swear it never cries when Paige has it. I'm pretty sure it's programmed to hate me!"  
"Get Caleb to take a look for you? He can set it so you and Paige pass without actually having to work together."  
"That would be cheating." Emily objected. She wasn't worried so much about her grade, she was more concerned on working on her teamwork with her fellow Shark.

The coach wouldn't be happy if she didn't see a marked improvement in their behaviour, and they weren't going to get it from cheating. "Besides, it's Paige's turn today so she can deal with all of the screaming and the late night feeds."  
"Well it's your choice...but you should consider giving Paige another chance. You just need to get to know her better."  
"I gave her a chance, she threw it back in my face!" Emily grumbled petulantly. She could only offer the other girl an olive branch so many times.

Thanks to Hanna taking forever getting ready, she and Emily only just made it to Ms Montgomery's class in time to hand in their infants. Emily was surprised to find Paige standing outside of the classroom waiting for her. "Careful Fields, we don't want PJ getting a tardy now, do we?" The other girl was back on form as she teased her partner. She was carefully balancing three cups of coffee, two of which she handed over to Emily and Hanna.  
"Thanks Paige!" Hanna beamed as she took the offered coffee. Emily was a little less enthusiastic about it, but she took her own with a mumbled thanks. She was a little taken aback to find Paige had gotten her coffee order perfect.

"Did you tell her how I take my coffee?" Emily quizzed once Paige had left for her home-room and she and Hanna were on their way to theirs.  
"She text me this morning to ask. I told you, she's really thoughtful, and sweet and-"  
"Okay! Okay! I'll give her another chance!" Emily snapped, she would have said anything to get Hanna to stop going on at her. Though she had to admit that the coffee had been a pretty good peace offering.  
"Great...because I invited Paige to sit with us at lunch!"  
"Hanna!"

Lunch didn't go as bad as Emily expected. Paige and Spencer were cramming for the same test in the afternoon, so they were both sitting quietly on opposite ends of the table whilst Hanna, Caleb and Emily sat between them. Aria was off having lunch with Ezra and Mona, who rarely left Hanna's side, was at her French club. "Hey Em, do you want to come over and study tonight?" Hanna asked, catching Emily's attention, Paige looked up from her notes as Emily answered.  
"Sure."  
"Weren't we supposed to be studying tonight?" Paige questioned. She was sure Hanna had asked her over.

"We still are. Emily can come too! It'll be fun!" Hanna tried to enthuse the other two girls, but they just shared a wary look, knowing the blonde had played them both. "How about you Spence? Are you up for a study date?"  
"No." Spencer answered dryly, not even bothering to look up from the notes she was busy highlighting.  
"Fine, it looks like it's just us! We can pick the kids up after school and head straight to my house." Hanna had it all worked out. She was planning on getting Paige and Emily to spend some time together, whether they wanted to or not.

"Fine by me." Emily shrugged. She'd known Hanna long enough to know there was little point in arguing with the blonde once she'd made her mind up about something; she was almost as bad as Spencer in that way.

"Sure. Why not." Paige sounded just as enthusiastic. "I''ll meet you guys after class. I just _really_ need to study right now." She started collecting up her books and papers and shoving them in to her bag. Paige needed somewhere quiet to go over her notes before the test.

"Where are you going?" Spencer finally looked up from her own book. She'd been trying to block out the noise from the rest of the table, but Paige standing up to leave had caught her attention.  
"Library." Paige answered flatly, not even sure why the other girl was asking in the first place.  
"I'm in." Spencer surprised her as she jumped to her feet and started packing up.  
"Okay..."

"Wow, Paige looks terrified." Hanna laughed as the unlikely duo left the table and headed for the library.  
"As long as neither of them have their hockey sticks we're good." Aria teased, remembering the last time the two girls had gone for each other at a field hockey practise the previous year.

The girls needn't have worried about Spencer and Paige though. For all Spencer had followed the other girl to the library, the pair ended up sitting in silence at separate tables and they made it through the rest of the lunch period without trying to kill each other. The exam was a little tougher than Paige expected, but she was pretty sure she'd passed it as she walked out of the classroom after the last bell. She didn't get very far before Hanna all but jumped on her.

"McCullers, change of plans! We can't go to my house tonight, my mom's having people from work over. Can we go to yours?" The blonde pretty much ambushed her, and Paige had only seconds to think before her answer.

"Uh, okay. I guess." Paige reluctantly agreed. She had no idea that Hanna was working an angle; the other girl was secretly hoping that going to Paige's house would help to show Emily just how much they had in common.  
"Awesome! I'll go get Em and we'll meet you in the parking lot!" Hanna bounced off down the corridor, leaving Paige with the feeling that she'd just ran in to a hurricane. She slowly trudged down the stairs and made her way out to the parking lot. She unchained her bike while she was waiting for the other girls to show up.

"Hey. How did the exam go?" Emily asked as she walked up to her, making an effort to be nice to the other swimmer. She was struggling with the baby carrier and her book bag, so Paige automatically reached out for both. She seemed to realise what she was doing at the last minute and just took hold of the carrier instead. It was a little awkward with pushing her bike along too, but she made it work.  
"It didn't go too bad. I'm pretty sure I didn't _totally_ flunk it." Paige forced a smile as she looked away from her fellow swimmer and down at the infant in the carrier. "And how are you doing Princess?"

"I've told you to stop calling me that!" Emily snapped, realising a second too late that Paige was actually talking to the doll.  
"Don't worry Em, you're still my favourite." Paige cracked up, enjoying the flush that spread over her cheeks. She walked over to Emily's car with the baby and strapped the carrier in before climbing on her bike. Hanna had been over to her house a handful of times before, so Paige didn't have to worry about giving Emily directions, or waiting around for the blonde to show up. She hopped on to her bike and set off for home. Using the side streets, and a few short-cuts she knew, she made it to her house before either of the other two.

After putting her bike away in the garage, she ran upstairs to check the state of her room. It was relatively clean, she just had to pick up some laundry off the floor and make her bed. She ran back downstairs when she heard a knock at the door and found Emily standing alone on her porch. "Where's Hanna? Did she get lost on the way over?" Paige quizzed as she took hold of the baby carrier and stepped aside to let the other girl in. Baby PJ was crying again, and had been since Emily had picked her up.

"She got in to some drama with Caleb. She said she'll be twenty minutes. Do you know Caleb hacked their baby? Hanna just keeps it in her closet after school!"  
"Well, no daughter of ours is living in the closet." Paige joked, earning a wry smile from the other swimmer.  
"Can't we just get him to stop it crying?" Emily whined, sick of the sound of the crying doll. Of course PJ fell silent the second Paige picked her up, confirming Emily's suspicions that the infant was in fact programmed to hate her.

"She doesn't even cry that much. You're probably just not holding her right." Paige lectured. "Why don't we go study in my room, then I can put her down until her 5pm feed."

"You seriously have the baby on a schedule?"  
"Of course... Oh, I see, I'm the one sticking to bedtimes and you're the _cool_ mom who lets her do what she wants, huh?"  
"You're such a dork." Emily shook her head, but she couldn't help but laugh as she followed Paige up the stairs to her room. "And you're writing that schedule down for me!"

Paige's room was pretty similar to Emily's. There were trophies and medals on her bookshelves, though not all of them were for swimming. There were awards for track, field hockey and even martial arts. It was a pretty impressive display. "Is this for MMA? I didn't know you could fight." Emily picked up a framed certificate and inspected it closely.

"It's not about fighting. It's about control." Paige finished putting the baby down to sleep in the empty sock drawer sitting on her desk and walked over to take the photo out of Emily's hands. She placed it back down, realigning it perfectly with the other accolades surrounding it.  
"Not that you have control issues." Emily teased. She had to hand it to the coach, the older woman had been right about her and Paige getting along better from doing the project. A week ago Paige would have jumped down her throat for such a comment, but instead she just laughed it off.

"It was more about impulse control. I got in a fight with this kid in eighth grade and the guidance councillor at my school suggested to my dad that I had anger issues."  
"So he made you do martial arts?" Emily asked as she looked around the room for a place to sit. She was apprehensive to sit down on Paige's bed, so she just hovered by it instead.  
"Actually, he started screaming at the councillor and we _both _ended up taking it up. Anger issues kind of run in the family." Paige admitted with an uncomfortable laugh. "You can sit down you know, the bed won't break."

Emily blushed as she sat down, realising Paige had picked up on her unease. For all things were a lot more civil between them, she was still conscious of Paige's reputation; she didn't want to think about how many girls might have been in the other girl's bed. "I was just looking for the notches on your bed posts." Emily tried to cover with a joke, but she could feel her cheeks burning up.

"Yeah, I ran out of space on my last bed so I had to get a new one. Haven't had a chance to break it in yet." Paige shot back without missing a beat. She was smiling, but there was a latent hostility to her voice. "I'm gonna grab a soda. Do you want one?"  
"Sure. Thanks."

Paige made a hasty retreat out of her own room, leaving Emily sitting on her bed. Her hands were shaking as she opened the fridge and reached inside for two cans of Coke. Thinking about it, she grabbed a third in case Hanna ever decided to show up. She would literally kill the blonde for leaving her alone with Emily. "Pull it together McCullers." Paige hissed at herself before turning on the faucet and splashing her face with water. She was perfectly capable of being alone with Emily Fields for twenty minutes. Even still, she pulled out her cell phone and tried dialling Hanna's number. She let out a sigh of frustration as it went straight to voicemail.

When Paige went back up to her room she found Emily lounging on her bed and flipping through her notebook. She had made herself comfortable in Paige's absence and was lying on her stomach with one elbow propping her up. Her hair was hanging down in front of her face and her shirt was riding up slightly; revealing a patch of smooth tanned skin at the bottom of her back. Paige froze at the door, her eyes lingering on the girl lying on her bed. She only moved from the door when Emily's cell started to ring and the other girl sat up to answer it, absently pulling her shirt back down.

Paige made a show off striding straight over to her desk, like she hadn't just been standing staring at the other swimmer. She tossed one of the cans of coke Emily's way, letting it drop down on the bed beside her. The other girl mouthed her thanks as she listened to whoever was on the other end of the line. She was frowning and didn't seem to be getting a word in edgeways, so Paige had no idea who she was talking to. With any luck, it was Hanna saying she'd be right over.

"Okay, sure. You can come by Saturday, I'll be home most of the day after I've finished work. Okay, bye." Emily just sat staring down at the phone in her hand long after the other person had hung up, obviously preoccupied by whatever had been said. Paige shifted uncomfortably in the chair by her desk, not quite sure why she was feeling so awkward in her own room.  
"Everything okay?" She probed causally, trying not to seem like she was prying.  
"What?" Emily looked up, as if suddenly remembering she wasn't alone. "Oh, yeah. It was just Maya. She's back in town this weekend and she wants to come over for some of her stuff."

"Oh." Paige had a reputation for being a player. She had been out on plenty of dates with girls, but she'd never been in a relationship long enough to have another person leave stuff at her house. She could only imagine how awkward it would be to have an ex turn up at her house after things had ended; and if the rumours at school were to be believed, then Emily's relationship with Maya had ended pretty badly.

A heavy silence settled over the two girls. Paige had no idea what else to say. She thought about asking Emily if she needed some company Saturday afternoon, but she guessed that even if she did, Paige wouldn't be her first choice. Emily finally broke the silence as she stood up and started packing her things. "I think I'm going to go. Hanna called before to say she'd be over soon and I just realised I don't have the notes I need." She looked close to tears as she tried to subtly wipe at her eyes without the other girl noticing. Paige felt a knot in the pit of her stomach as she took in the sight of just how broken Emily had been left by her ex-girlfriend. There had been talk of a betrayal, with Maya cheating on her with some guy at the reform school she'd gone to, but Paige hadn't paid much notice to the gossip circulating at school.

"Sure. No problem. I'll write down that schedule and e-mail it to your or something." Paige did her best to act normal as she led the other girl downstairs to show her to the door. It opened just before Paige could reach out for the handle and her dad strode in, carrying his coat and his briefcase.  
"Hey kiddo, how's it going?" He greeted his daughter and then noticed the girl hovering behind her on the stairs. "Oh, hi. It's Emily, right?" He recognised the girl from Paige's swim team, and as the one who had beaten her to anchor a few times earlier in the season.

"Hi Mr McCullers." Emily greeted him back politely, really wishing they had just gone to Hanna's like they were supposed to. She had known Hanna's mom for years and felt completely at ease around her friend's parents, but this was the first time she had actually spoken to Paige's father. She had seen him lose him temper at a few of the meets and it was no secret that he'd been mad when Emily had gotten anchor over his daughter. "I was just leaving."

"Don't feel like you've got to leave on my part. I'm heading straight back out." He smiled at the teenager as he dropped his briefcase on the side table by the door and picked up a gym bag that was lying beside it. "Paige, I'll be back late. There's money on the fridge for dinner. Why don't you order you and your friend some pizza or something?" Nick McCullers seemed like a completely different person away from the pool. His southern accent didn't seem quite so heavy when he wasn't shouting his head off and he looked more relaxed than Emily had ever seen him at any of the swim meets.

"Oh, and Paige? Don't forgot to get some practise in tonight. We've got that meeting with Stanford coming up next month." Nick called over his shoulder on the way out and Paige had to fight the urge to roll her eyes at him. He knew full well that Paige would be training in the pool later, he'd just wanted to let Emily know that Stanford were interested in her.  
"Stanford huh? Impressive." Emily had been approached by a few scouts already, the most impressive of which being Danby.

"Yeah, well it's just a meeting." Paige tried to shrug it off and play down the upcoming meeting. Stanford was her dream school and she didn't want to jinx it by telling too many people about it. "Hey, why don't you stay for dinner? Hanna's coming over soon and we could forget about studying and just order some take out?" Paige suggested, hoping to be able to convince the other girl. Emily really looked like she needed to be around other people.

"Maybe some other time? I'm just really beat... I'll see you at school tomorrow." Emily made her excuses as she slung her book bag over her shoulder and headed for the door. She wanted to get away before Hanna could turn up and try to convince her to stay.  
"Sure. I'll see you tomorrow." Paige couldn't deny she was a little disappointed that the other girl was leaving, but it was probably for the best. "And if you need anything Saturday, just let me know, okay?"  
"Okay." Emily seemed a little taken aback by Paige's offer. She hadn't been expecting it. She forced a smile she wasn't feeling as Paige opened the door for her. "Thanks...I'll see you in the morning; and I'll get the coffee this time."


	6. Chapter 6

_**A/N: Hey guys, thanks for reading, and for all the follows and reviews! This is the last complete chapter I've got; so after this, updates will probably be weekly. **_

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"Paige? Where are you going?" Emily called after the other girl as she spotted her heading for the fire exit that led from the locker room out to the parking lot. It was late Friday afternoon and swim practise had just finished. Paige had taken a quick shower and had been planning on going straight home, until Emily had shouted her over.  
"I'm going home... because that's where I live." Paige answered dryly. Her times hadn't been that great in the water and she wanted to get in a few laps in her own pool before she had to get ready for her date.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" Emily stared at her expectantly as she stood with her hands on her hips. She was only half dressed, with her towel still wrapped around her waist. Her bare legs were something of a distraction, but Paige managed to keep it together as she came up with a witty retort.  
"No. I don't think so. _I'm _wearing pants."

Emily chose to ignore the other girl's sarcasm altogether, knowing that she was deliberately trying to goad her. "PJ! I've got work tonight, and you said you'd take her." It had completely slipped Paige's mind. There was no way she'd be able to get any time in the pool if she had to look after the infant.  
"I did say that...and I will _totally_ look after PJ, but I'm meeting my date at seven. I'll need to drop her off at the Brew for like quarter to."  
"That's fine. Hanna's dropping by tonight so she can take care of her until I get off."

"Awesome. You know, we should make her PJ's godmother or something." Paige suggested as she changed track and sat down to wait for Emily to finish getting dressed. If she was going to get stuck babysitting then she was going to need a ride home. "We definitely need to get her christened; a child needs moral fibre."  
"You're really not funny, you know that right?" Emily rolled her eyes at the other swimmer, though she was biting back a smile. Paige didn't miss it.  
"So, then why are you smiling?"

"Can you quit watching me change and just go get the baby already?" Emily snapped, her smile finally breaking through.  
"Don't flatter yourself Fields, I've seen it all before." Paige shot her a wink and went off to fetch the infant from Ms Montgomery's class.

Emily took her sweet time in getting ready, leaving Paige to impatiently wait for her by the car. She was checking her watch for the third time when the other girl finally turned up. For someone who was supposed to be starting work in less than an hour, she didn't seem to be in that much of a rush. Emily's phone was pressed to her ear as she tried to hold on to her kitbag and search through her purse for her car keys. Paige rolled her eyes as she took her kitbag from her.

Emily mouthed her thanks as she dutifully listened to whoever was on the other end of the phone. "Yes Mom, I'm on my way back now. I'll totally have time for dinner before work...plate in the fridge, got it. Okay, I love you too. I'm hanging up now. Okay, bye." The other girl ended the call and tossed her phone on to the dash as she shot Paige an apologetic smile. "Sorry about that. You know what mom's can be like...oh god, I can't believe I just said that! I'm so sorry!" Emily realised her mistake a beat too late and hastily tried to apologise.

"It's fine. I know what you meant." Paige brushed it off. She had stopped getting upset whenever anyone mentioned her mom a long time ago. "And my dad's the same. He's always calling me to ask if I've eaten, and getting him off the phone is a nightmare; there are _wars _that haven't lasted as long as some of his calls." Her joke got a laugh from the other girl and helped to break the tension in the car.

Emily hated to admit it, but spending time with Paige all week hadn't been as bad as she had expected. There were times when the pair had actually gotten along quite well; and Hanna had been all too happy to point them out to her. "So are you going out for dinner or something?" Emily quizzed, trying to make conversation as she drove the other girl home.  
"Uh, yeah. Dinner and a movie." Paige didn't sound all that enthusiastic about her upcoming date.

She was slumped down in the front of Emily's car, wearing an expression that suggested her attention was a million miles away. Emily tried again to get her to start talking. "What movie?"  
"Some chick flick." Paige shrugged. "I wanted to go see Flesh Eaters 3, but what can you do?"  
"I saw that last week, it's _so_ good! Not as good as the first one though... What?" The other swimmer questioned the look Paige was sending her way. "I like horror movies."

"I learn something new about you everyday." Paige mused as they pulled up outside her house. She fetched PJ from the back and tossed Emily a wave as the other girl drove off. Looking down at the infant simulator, she offered it a wry smile. "Well kiddo, Momma Fields has to work and I have to get ready for my date, so no crying from you tonight!"

It was close to seven o'clock when Paige finally made it to the Brew. She hadn't been able to get in any extra practise in the pool, but the baby had been quiet enough to let her get ready in peace. Emily was busy at the front counter, so Paige walked right past her and dumped PJ's carrier down on the table Hanna and Caleb were sitting at; their doll was nowhere in sight. She was hoping to walk straight back out, but Emily came up behind her and Hanna insisted on gushing over what she wearing. "Paige, you look super hot!"  
"You look nice." Emily agreed, making the other girl duck her head.

"Thanks." She blushed as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. Her bangs were still growing out and they had a habit of falling down in to her face. She'd managed to tie back most of the rest of her hair in a side bride; and despite having reservations about the date, Paige had gone all out to impress. She was wearing a form fitting white shirt over a pair of black skinny jeans that were tucked in to her boots. The top couple of buttons of her shirt were undone, and a thin black tie was hanging down from her collar.

Hanna didn't miss the bashful look that crossed over Paige's face from Emily's compliment. She smiled to herself, deciding she'd bring it up with the other girl the next time they were on their own. "Are you meeting your date here for dinner?"  
"I booked a table at the Grille. I should probably get going. I'll see you guys later." Paige quickly said her goodbyes; she hated to be late for anything. Hanna waited until she was out the door before turning to Emily with a smirk. "Paige looked nice, huh?"

"Yeah, she did. I already said that." Emily answered distractedly. PJ had started to cry again as soon as Paige had walked out. "Can you look after the doll until I finish? Kevin's running late, he needs me to stay until he can make it in."  
"Seriously Em, just let Caleb take a look at it! You and Paige can get an easy A without even trying!"

"That's not really the point of the project, Hanna." Emily rolled her eyes at her friend. "Paige and I are _supposed_ to be making an effort to get along."  
"And how's that going? You and Paige _getting along?_" Hanna's smirk widened, but Emily was too distracted to notice. The Brew was starting to fill up with the evening crowd and she had to get back behind the counter to take orders.

"Don't you think Em and Paige would make a really cute couple?" Hanna turned her attention to her long suffering boyfriend, who was hunched over with his PSP in his hands. Caleb let out a groan of frustration as he paused his game and set it aside on the table.  
"Don't go there Han, I don't think either of them would thank you for it."  
"But they'd be totally good together!" Hanna protested. "Emily's hurting over the whole Maya thing. I think she could use someone like Paige right now. She deserves a little fun."

"I dunno." Caleb shook his head. He was wearing his favourite oversized grey beanie and his long hair was poking out beneath it. "I like McCullers, but she's got a reputation; I'm just not sure you want to set one of your best friends up with a player."  
"Maybe you're right." Hanna conceded as she glanced over at Emily by the counter. She looked happy enough, smiling at the customers as she took their orders; but Hanna knew the other girl well enough to know that her smile was a little too wide and her eyes were a touch too bright; Emily was faking it.

"God, Emily wasn't joking. This thing never quits!" The blonde huffed as she picked up the crying doll and tried to shush it. It had no effect. Baby PJ just kept on crying, attracting the attention of the other patrons in the coffee shop.  
"Maybe it's hungry, or needs changed or something?" Caleb suggested. Hanna started looking through the changing bag for a diaper, but stopped short as she found something unexpected. She pulled a leather wallet out of the bag. Hanna frowned as she flipped it open and checked out the name on the ATM card inside. It belonged to Paige. "Crap. I don't think Paige's date is going to go so well without this."

"Is that Paige's wallet?" Emily asked as she made her way back over to the table her friends were sitting at. Hanna answered her question with a flash of Paige's driving license. "God, she's always leaving it everywhere." Emily shook her head in disdain as she pulled her cellphone out of the pocket in her apron. The other girl was always leaving it lying around in the locker room after practise.

Within ten minutes a red-faced Paige was walking through the door of the Brew with a striking blonde girl. Her date was squeezed in to a tiny baby blue dress that barely covered her thighs. Her face was probably naturally pretty, but she was wearing so much make-up that it was hard to tell. Emily didn't recognise her from around school, and she looked to be a year or two older than the rest of them. She didn't look happy to be dragged in to the coffee shop. Her expression soured further as Paige approached Hanna and Caleb's table.

"I can't believe I left this, thanks for finding it Hanna." Paige shook her head as she took the wallet from Hanna.  
"You're always losing that thing. Remember when you left it at that gas station when we were on our way back from that away meet? And the driver was pissed he had to go back ten miles to get it?" Emily teased, catching the attention of Paige's date.

If she hadn't been happy to see Hanna, then she really didn't look pleased with the sight of Emily. "You really need a key chain or something."  
"Good idea Fields, I'll just hop back to the 90s and get one." Paige replied with a heavy dose of sarcasm as she pocketed her wallet. There was something in the wry smile that she sent Emily's way that had her date bristling.

"We should get going if we're going to keep our table." She whined in a nasally voice that Emily decided was the most annoying sound she had ever heard.  
"We've probably lost it already, why don't we just see an earlier movie?" Paige suggested, seemingly trying to make the most out of a bad situation. Emily could see right her though, she clearly couldn't wait to get her date alone in the darkness of the cinema.

"We serve a dinner menu here." Emily suggested helpfully. She didn't miss the flicker of irritation that passed over Paige's otherwise expressionless face. For once Paige McCullers was going to have to wait to get her wicked way with a girl. Emily felt a little smug inside as Paige's date reluctantly agreed to the table she offered them.

Not long after she'd sat the couple down, Kevin turned up to start his shift. Emily got herself a coffee and slipped back over to the table her friends were sitting at. Hanna was staring over at Paige and her date. "Do you think she's really a natural blonde?"  
"Well if she drops something and has to bend over you'll probably find out." Emily answered sharply.  
"Me-ow." Hanna laughed as she shifted her attention back to Emily. "You're right though. Who is she trying to kid with that dress? And did you see those heels? She's got to be like half Aria's size without them!"  
"Did you hear the way she talked?" Emily pitched in, joining Hanna in scrutinising the older girl. Caleb ignored both of them as he went back to playing his video game.

"Paige looks kind of...miserable." Hanna pointed out after twenty minutes of glancing over at the other table. Paige was leaning on one elbow as she slurped at the soup sitting in the bowl in front of her. The girl opposite her hadn't stopped talking the entire time. She kept rambling on about something or another. Paige seemed to be nodding and smiling at the right times, but she wasn't really listening.

"That's probably because she expected to be in the movie theatre with her hand up that girl's dress by now." Emily replied bitterly. Paige and her date clearly had nothing in common, so it was obvious why she was interested in her.  
"She sure likes older girls." Hanna muttered, making the comment almost absently. Emily picked up on it straight away.  
"What do you mean?"

"Don't you remember when Allison caught Paige and that college girl together? It was a couple of years ago, at one of Noel Kahn's parties. Ali told _everyone._"  
"Oh yeah." Emily seemed to remember hearing something about Paige and an older girl. It had been about the same time that the other swimmer had started earning her reputation around school. Emily couldn't imagine ever sleeping around like that. She'd lost her virginity to Maya; and up until recently she'd thought her first girlfriend would be the first and last person she would sleep with. The thought of being so intimate with someone else was daunting.

Emily was still lost in her own thoughts when she heard a shrill scream and a load of commotion coming over from Paige's table. She looked up and found Paige on her feet with bright red soup staining her previously immaculate white shirt. The blonde was fussing over her and trying to grab at her shirt, but Paige brushed off her concern and quickly excused herself to the bathroom. Hanna followed straight after her.

"What the hell happened?" The blonde demanded as she walked in to the bathroom and found Paige stripping off her shirt. She was wearing a plain white muscle vest underneath, showing off her well developed of the soup had soaked right through though, leaving a pale orange stain down the front of her chest.  
"I guess I tipped the bowl or something." Paige was flustered as she tried running her shirt under the faucet. "Damn it, I'm going to have to go home and get changed!"

"I think I might be able to help you out." Emily appeared at the bathroom door and held out a black shirt for Paige to take. The other girl just stood staring blankly at the offered shirt. "It's nothing fancy, it's just a spare shirt I had hanging up in my locker. It's clean."

"Thanks." Paige finally reached out and took the shirt. She hadn't been worried about it being freshly laundered, she'd just been stunned by Emily's offering. Paige pulled her vest over her head and pulled on Emily's shirt while the other girl averted her eyes. Hanna wasn't quite so bashful.

"Damn Paige, you've got like _prison_ abs!" She exclaimed at the sight of the young swimmer's washboard stomach.  
"Thanks... I guess." Paige laughed as she buttoned the borrowed shirt up. It was a little loose, seeing as Emily was more well endowed in the chest area than she was. "And thanks again for this Em... I guess I don't need to cut my date short." Despite the easy smile on Paige's lips, it didn't quite match the look in her eyes. "Oh, by the way, could you guys do me a favour and stop staring at us? Thanks."

Paige trudged back to her table and took a seat opposite her date just as Hanna and Emily were walking out of the bathroom together. The college girl leant over and ran her hand appreciatively down Paige's front. "Nice shirt. I think I like this one better."  
"Remind me to burn that shirt." Emily muttered in Hanna's ear as they walked past and took their own seats again. Caleb barely looked up from his game as Hanna put her hand on his knee.

"Is it just me, or does McCullers look sick of her life right now?" Hanna carried on staring over at the couple, despite Paige directly asking her not to.  
"She asked us not to watch them." Emily reminded her, though she managed to sneak a glance of her own. Hanna was right. Paige looked like a woman condemned as she sat listening to her date's grating voice. She was fiddling with her phone under the table for a minute before she slipped it back in to her pocket. "I think I'm going to take off. I've got a ton of studying to do for that History quiz on Monday..." Emily started making her excuses for leaving when Paige's phone went off.

"Hey...what? Okay, I'm on my way!" The other girl sounded panicked as she jumped to her feet. Emily frowned in concern as she watched her pull on her jacket and turn to her date. "I'm sorry, I've got to go. My cousin's had an accident and my aunt needs me to look after his older brother while she goes to the ER. I'm so sorry about this, I'll call you."

"Do you need a ride?" Emily called over to the fleeing girl, knowing she hadn't driven over when she'd dropped off the baby. She picked up PJ's carrier and the changing bag and made her way over towards a flustered Paige. She looked like a deer caught in headlights as she looked between Emily and her date.

"Uh, sure. Thanks Emily." The two of them rushed out to Emily's car. She quickly strapped the car seat in to the back and then jumped in the front, ready to set a new land speed record to get Paige home for her baby cousin. "Do you want me to take you home, or to your aunt's house?"  
"Actually..." Paige started, her cheeks colouring as she fidgeted uncomfortably with her phone in her hands. "There was no call from my aunt. I just wanted out of that date. I've got an app on my phone that can fake a call and..." She shrugged, her face burning with embarrassment. She hadn't meant for Emily to worry and offer to rush her home.

"Seriously?" Emily stared at her in disbelief. Paige had looked miserable all through dinner, but Emily hadn't been expecting her to ditch her date. "You faked a call about your cousin being sick to get out of a date?" Emily felt her temper rising. Paige hadn't meant to use her, but she'd inadvertently become an accessory to the other girl's callous actions.  
"Apparently there's an app for that." Paige tried to crack a joke to break the tense silence that had settled over them in the car.

Despite herself, Emily managed a weak smile. "I can't believe you did that." she shook her head in dismay. "To be honest with you, I can't believe you _agreed _to go on a date with her in the first place!"  
"Brandy's not so bad." Paige shrugged, her shoulders flexing underneath the fitted shirt she'd borrowed from the other girl.  
"Brandy?" Emily cracked up. "Nice to see she already has her stripper name picked out!"

Beside her, Paige started laughing too. Eventually the awkwardness between them passed and the atmosphere felt lighter. "Seriously, what did you even see in her? _Besides _the obvious?"  
"She asked me out. I don't like saying no to girls." Paige shrugged rather helplessly.  
"So you just bail on them instead?" Emily asked, accusation lacing her voice. "Faking an emergency is pretty harsh."

"I _tried_ to get out of it!" Paige protested. "I left my damn wallet in the changing bag on purpose, but then you went and called me! I tried to get it over with quicker by skipping dinner, until _you_ suggested eating at the Brew. I even spilt hot soup all down myself and-"  
"I gave you my shirt..." Emily winced, realising just what lengths the other girl had gone to in order to try and get out of her date with Brandy. "Why not just be straight with her and say no to start with?"

Paige looked uncomfortable with the question. She looked out the window as she shrugged again. "It takes a lot of guts to ask someone out. I can't imagine what it's like to put yourself out there and have someone say no."  
"Because nobody's ever said 'no' to you before?" Emily teased as she pulled up in front of Paige's house. The other girl looked uncomfortable again as she finally turned to look at Emily.

"Actually, I've never asked anybody out. Ever." She answered honestly and instantly felt Emily scrutinising her; trying to figure out if she was telling the truth.  
"Seriously?" Paige was waiting for the other girl to laugh, but Emily seemed more startled than amused. "But you've dated a ton of girls!" The accusation in her voice came out a little stronger than she intended and Emily almost apologised.  
"They all asked me out, and I was just too nice to stay no...A lot of girls expect a date with me to go a certain way; I'm kind of sick of having to live up to other people's expectations, you know?" Paige let out a heavy sigh as she reached for the door handle.

Emily was left suddenly wondering whether she'd gotten her fellow swimmer all wrong. The timid girl sitting in the passenger seat didn't seem anything at all like the confident 'player' she was supposed to be; maybe that was part of her act, how she drew girls in. Paige had never really tried anything on with Emily; she was probably the only girl in school that she _didn't_ try to flirt with.

"Haven't you ever wanted to ask a girl out?" Emily quizzed, stopping Paige in her tracks as she tried to get out of the car.  
"Sure." She answered with a doleful smile. "There's this one girl...I've wanted to ask her out for the longest time."

"So what's stopping you?" Emily's curiosity was peaked. If Paige was so interested in someone, then what was she doing wasting her time with girls like Brandy?  
"I'm terrified she'll say no." Paige's answer was raw and honest, and it took Emily by complete surprise.  
"Maybe you should take a chance?" She suggested, trying to be helpful. "What girl could turn you down?"

Paige bit back a bashful smile as she ducked her head and climbed out of the car. She leant against the open window as she said, "Maybe I will...someday. Thanks for the ride, Em; and the shirt."  
"Em?" Emily smirked at the other girl's use of her nickname. Paige quickly reverted to her normal self as she laughed and shot her a playful wink.  
"Goodnight, _Princess_."


	7. Chapter 7

_**A/N: I didn't expect to get this chapter done so soon, but I managed to finish it off after work (who needs sleep anyway?) ****It will probably be next week before I get another chapter finished off though.**_

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"Morning, Sunshine." Paige beamed at Emily as she climbed out of her car, early Saturday morning. She moved to help the bleary eyed girl with PJ's carrier.  
"How are you so perky in the mornings?" Emily huffed as she fished the keys to the store out of her purse. "Have you already finished your run?" Paige usually didn't show up at the Brew for another hour, but she had made a conscious effort to get up earlier to finish her run in time for Emily starting work.

"I guess I'm just naturally perky." Paige quipped with a teasing smile. "You should try running in the mornings; it's a great way to start the day.  
"I think I'll stick to my frosted flakes." Emily grumbled back. Once she finally had the door unlocked she stepped aside to let Paige in first before following her in.  
"No wonder you look run down. That crap is _full _of sugar." Paige pulled a face as she sat PJ's carrier down on the counter.

"I'm tired because that_ thing _kept me up half the night! All it does for me is cry!"  
"Em! Not in front of the baby!" Paige faked a frown as she covered the infant's ears. Emily rolled her eyes at her. It was far too early for Paige's sense of humour. She went off to set up the machines and poured Paige a glass of orange juice while she was at it.  
"I kind of hate to ask, but are you still okay to babysit for a couple of hours tonight? It'd only be like four till nine?" Paige was hoping that her reluctant partner would still agree to taking care of the doll later that night.

"As long as it's really for your 'family night' and not just so you can go out on some date that you don't even want to be on." Emily accused the other girl as she flopped down against the other side of the counter. She was wearing one of her many plaid shirts, with the top few buttons popped open. Paige had to fight to keep her eyes level with Emily's face as she forced an easy smile.  
"It's for family time. I promise."

"Good." The other swimmer seemed happy with her answer as she pushed herself back so she was standing upright again. "I've got half an hour until my first customers show up and I need to get set up. So I'll make your breakfast and then you _and _PJ can go sit quietly in the corner."  
"Keep on working on that customer service, Fields." Paige joked as she reached in to her wind-breaker for her wallet. Emily waved off her attempt to pay though.  
"It's on me. Just, seriously, keep that thing from crying. I feel like I'm about to lose it."

"At least we're halfway through. Only one more week to go." Paige pointed out, trying to cheer the other girl up. She bit at the inside of her cheek as she tried not to think about the fact that she and Emily would probably just go back to ignoring each other once the project was over. She hated to admit it, but Paige had started to like having a reason to see the other girl outside of school and swimming. "And hey, we haven't tried to kill each other yet!" "There is that." Emily agreed with a nod of her head and a small laugh. "We'll see if all of this teamwork pays off at Monday's meet."

"Better hope it does; the Red Devils are no pushovers." There would also be the added pressure of potential scouts being there, and Paige was planning on spending most of her weekend training for the meet.  
"Relax _Captain, _we've got it in the bag."

* * *

"Hi Mrs Fields, is Emily-"  
"Paige! Come in, come in!" Pam practically pulled the teenager inside after answering the door to her. Paige was taken by surprise as the older woman hugged her. She wasn't from a family that were really big on hugging, and she'd barely ever said more than hello to Emily's mom at swim meets. "It's so nice to see you!"  
"Uh, nice to see you too." Paige awkwardly returned the hug. It was difficult with PJ's carrier in one hand and the changing bag slung over her shoulder. She somehow made it work though.

As Pam pulled away, Paige suddenly noticed Emily's ex standing by the bottom of the stairs. Maya looked both bored and annoyed at the same time. Her eyes narrowed on Paige as she took in the sight of her. There was something pretty close to jealousy playing out across her face. "Hi." Paige nodded at the other girl. She'd seen Maya around school with Emily, but she'd never really spoken to her before. They had never ran in the same circles.  
"Hey." Maya replied dryly, still deciding what to make of the other girl.

"Paige, Emily's just upstairs if you want to go up." Pam started ushering the swimmer up the stairs, despite her protests.  
"Oh, I just wanted to drop PJ off-"  
"Nonsense! Emily's been looking forward to you coming over all afternoon. Go right on up." Paige was pretty sure that Emily's mom was just doing her best to rile Maya, but she went up anyway.

She found Emily's door ajar as she reached the top of the stairs. She knocked lightly before stepping inside. "I'm almost done, just give me a...Paige." Emily looked flustered as she turned to face her. She was wearing an oversized hoodie, and a pair of shorts that showed off her never ending legs. Her hair was tied back in a messy bun, with strands of it escaping. "I thought you were Maya. I didn't realise it was four o'clock yet."

"I might be a little early." Paige checked her watch with a sheepish smile. "Nice room." She looked around Emily's room and placed PJ's carrier down on the window seat.  
"Thanks. It's usually a little tidier." Emily sighed as she carried on raiding her closet and tossing various items in to the cardboard box sitting on her bed. It looked pretty full already. "I thought I had all of Maya's things packed already, but I keep finding stuff everywhere, you know?"

"Not really a problem I've ever had." Paige answered honestly. She'd never gotten so involved with anyone that she ended up with a room full of their belongings.  
"I forgot, love 'em and leave them; that's your motto, right?" Emily rolled her eyes at the other girl.  
"Leave them maybe." Paige shrugged in response. "Speaking of leaving, I've got to get going. I was just going to drop PJ off, but you're mom kind of strong-armed me in to coming up here. I'll be over to pick PJ up around nine, if that's still cool with you?"  
"Sure. I'll see you out...I guess I've got to go down and face Maya sooner or later." Emily frowned down at the box full of stuff on her bed. There were CDs, T-shirts, books, and a whole load of memories, all packed neatly inside.

Paige could see she was struggling. Making an executive decision, she leant forward and picked up the box with both hands. Emily didn't object. She just offered the other swimmer a grateful smile as she followed her downstairs. Maya was still waiting at the bottoms of the staircase, with Pam hovering nearby in the kitchen. "Here you go." Paige handed the box over to Maya with an almost jovial expression. Without warning, she turned back around to Emily and pressed her lips to the side of her cheek. "I'll be back later, babe. Try not to miss me too much." She shot a startled Emily a wink before heading for the door and tossing a wave at Pam; who was grinning from ear to ear as she bid goodbye to the McCullers girl.

Paige's bravado was short lived as she climbed back in to her car. Her hands were literally shaking as she gripped the steering wheel, and her lips were tingling. She'd _kissed_ Emily. She'd actually kissed her! It might have only been on the cheek, but Paige's heart was racing all the same. She was still sitting in front of Emily's house when the door opened again and Maya stalked out. She dumped the box she was carrying on to the back seat of her car, and shot Paige a sour look.

"Paige is _just _a friend, is she?" Pam quizzed her daughter as she hovered over her in the kitchen.  
"Yes. She is." Emily was still blushing as she rubbed absently at her cheek. She'd been shocked by what Paige had done, but she hadn't failed to notice the look of pure contempt on Maya's face when she'd followed Paige out. Emily was saved from any more of her mother's questions when she heard the baby crying up in her room. She grabbed a soda from the fridge and headed upstairs to see to it.

It took a while to get the thing to quieten down, but once the baby was settled Emily lay it down on her bed while she tried to revise. It was hard to focus on the words in the books in font of her when her mind was racing. Things with Maya were still raw, and having the other girl turn up to pick up the last of her things felt like the final nail in the coffin. Paige kissing her had totally come out of left field and left her a little stunned. She had never really thought about her team mate in _that _way before, but she couldn't deny the feel of Paige's lips brushing softly against the side of her cheek was still playing on her mind hours later.

"PJ, please..." Emily groaned in to her hand as the baby cried relentlessly. It was a little after seven and Paige wasn't due to collect the infant for another two hours. Emily had barely read through more than a few chapters of her textbook and she had taken next to none of it in. Giving up on even trying to study, she tossed the book in front of her aside and picked up her phone to call Paige, hoping she'd come pick up the baby sooner. The phone just rang and rang though, leaving Emily feeling even more frustrated. "That's it..."

Within ten minutes, Emily was standing on the McCullers' porch. Not being able to reach the other girl had led her to believe that Paige had lied to her about not having a date. If she was really spending time with her family then she'd be at home; so Emily rang the bell and waited for an answer. She felt a little guilty when Paige actually answered the door, but it didn't last for long as she heard laughter and music coming from inside the house and a lithe brunette walked up behind Paige before she could get a word out.

"Family night, huh?" Emily scowled, her anger rising with every passing second that the doll she was carrying wouldn't shut up. She shoved the carrier in to Paige's hand. "Sorry to ruin your date, but I'm done! This thing hasn't stopped crying all night and I'm about five seconds away from throwing it in the lake!"  
"Em, I-" Paige started to defend herself, but the other swimmer didn't want to listen; all she could focus on was the older girl standing behind her. She looked to be in her early twenties; with long dark hair that was tied back, showing off sharp cheekbones and an inquisitive smile.

"You must be Emily, right?" The older woman addressed her by name, catching Emily off guard. "I'm Sara; Paige's aunt."  
"Oh my god..." Emily felt her cheeks burning hot with embarrassment as she realised she had just made a complete fool of herself. "I'm so sorry. I thought...god, you must think I'm a complete nut, turning up like this-"  
"It's fine." Sara waved off the younger girl's apology as she moved to take the baby's carrier from Paige. "Trust me, everyone in this house has freaked out over a crying baby at one point or another. Why don't you come in for a bit?"  
"Oh, no thank you. I'll take PJ back home. Paige, you can just pick her up whenever." Emily reached out for the baby, unable to meet the other swimmer's eye as she did so.

"Don't be silly. Come on in, we were just about to have dessert." Sara ushered the teenager inside. She had the same kind of demanding personality that seemed to run in Paige's family, and wouldn't take no for an answer. "You _actually _called it PJ?" Sara shot her niece a disbelieving look. She'd thought Paige had been kidding about that.

"It was Emily's suggestion." Paige shrugged in her own defence. "I'm going to go settle her down. I'll be right back." She took the baby upstairs, leaving her aunt to show Emily in to the kitchen. It was easy for her to spot the similarities between the two women once she knew they were related. They both had the same athletic build, easy charm and warm smile. Emily wasn't sure when she first started to think of Paige's smile as warm, but she tried not to dwell on the thought for too long.

"Blueberry pie okay for you?" Sara quizzed as she started plating the dessert up.  
"Yeah, thanks." Emily still felt stupid for turning up at Paige's house, and she felt even more awkward standing in the kitchen on her own with her aunt. "I'm really sorry for coming over. I just thought that..."  
"Paige was out enjoying herself while you were stuck holding the baby?" Sara teased as she handed her a plate of pie. "Trust me, I've been there. When my son Josh was born it was like this tiny little terrorist was just dropped in my lap and I had to get on with it. Speak of the devil." She grinned as a little boy came running in to the kitchen, shouting for his dessert.

He skidded to a stop in front of Emily, sceptically taking the stranger in. He had to be at least seven, which had Emily seriously rethinking how old Paige's aunt really was. The boy took a moment to evaluate her before offering her a fearless grin. "I'm Josh! Who are you?"  
"Hi, Josh." Emily smiled at him. She was much better with children than she was with babies. "I'm Emily."

"Do you like Xbox? Paige is supposed to be playing with me, but she has to look after her doll... It cries like my baby brother does." Emily felt a pang of guilt for being responsible for tearing Paige away from her cousin.  
"I love video games. What are you playing?"  
"Tomb Raider. Come see." Josh took hold of her hand and started pulling her towards the living room. They passed Mr McCullers on the way. He was carrying a baby in his arms, and he looked a little startled to see Emily with his nephew. He greeted her politely all the same.

By the time Paige came back downstairs, Emily and Josh were settled in front of the television in the living room. Emily was navigating her way through a dense jungle and taking out bad guys as Josh cheered her on. Paige took a seat beside them on the couch and threw her arm around her cousin. "You missed a power up back there."  
"Are you seriously telling me how to play _Tomb Raider?_" Emily rolled her eyes. "I _own_ at this game!"

"Sure you do, _grandma_. How are you even still on this level? I'd have finished it by now." Paige smirked, deliberately riling the other girl.  
"Prove it!" Emily handed over the controller, giving Paige exactly what she wanted. She dived straight back in to her game, not necessarily going any faster than Emily had been. "You totally just played me, didn't you?"

"Yup." Paige's grin widened as Emily rolled her eyes at her. "Hate the game, not the player, Princess."  
"Is Emily really a princess?" Josh frowned as he looked between Emily and his cousin.

"She sure is, buddy." Paige didn't bother tearing her eyes away from the screen. She was too engrossed with the game, but she could still see Emily glaring at her out of the corner of her eye.

Back in the kitchen, Nick McCullers handed his youngest nephew over to his sister. He nodded in the direction he'd just come from. "I didn't know Emily was coming over tonight." "I think the robot baby is taking its toll." Sara shrugged. "Not that a stressed teenage girl with a baby is a new thing around here." Nick's younger sister had only been seventeen when she'd come home and told their parents that she was pregnant.

She'd had Josh at eighteen and had married the baby's father a year later. They'd stayed together for almost six years, until Sara had fallen pregnant with her youngest son, Nathan. At around the same time she'd discovered her husband had been cheating on her with a high school senior, and they'd divorced before Nathan had been born.

"Crying babies are hardly new either." Nick pointed out with the same wry humour as his sister. "I swear, Paige never stopped crying for the first two years!" He shook his head at the memories of more than a few sleepless nights. Paige's mother had been on drugs throughout most of her pregnancy, meaning Paige had been born with drug dependency too. As well as the endless crying, she had suffered with tremors and fevers. For a long time Nick had been too frightened to even give his daughter cough syrup; but he needn't have worried. It had quickly become apparent that Paige was nothing like her mother.

"It's not often Paige has friends over. Emily seems like a nice kid." Nick tried to be subtle about it as he fished for information. "She's a strong swimmer; and she's from a good family..."  
"Should we call her parents and arrange the wedding now... or wait to find out if there's something actually going on?" Sara teased her big brother. She was pretty sure Paige's freshman crush on her team mate hadn't just disappeared, but she also knew just how many dates her niece had been on in the past year; though she wasn't about to share that information with her brother.

When they moved back in to the living room they found Josh and the girls still playing video games, with Emily and Paige bickering over the best way to finish the level they were on. Emily ended up staying at the McCullers house for a few more hours. Josh fell asleep early on and Nick put him to bed in the guest room; leaving Paige and Emily to move on to a racing game that brought out each girl's competitive side. Paige almost threw her controller in frustration after losing one race, but she'd been all too aware that her father was still sitting across the room from her, so she'd reigned her temper in.

"I should probably get going." It was almost ten o'clock when Emily finally put her controller down and threw in the towel.  
"But we're tied! One more race! Winner takes all?" Paige pleaded. She wanted Emily to stay longer, but it didn't have much to do with proving she was the better racer. Paige had barely been able to concentrate on the games anyway, mostly from having Emily's thigh pressed up against her leg all night.  
"I'll let you have this one." Emily laughed as she stood up. She said goodbye to Nick and Sara and thanked them for letting her stay; she'd definitely taken a liking to Paige's aunt, and she'd even warmed to Nick a little bit too. He wasn't so scary outside of swim meets.

Paige reluctantly showed the other girl to the front door. Emily waited until they were out of earshot of the others before apologising again. "I'm really sorry about tonight. PJ just wouldn't stop crying, and you didn't pick up when I called and...I'm so sorry."  
"Forget about it." Paige waved her apology off. "You've had a rough day. Look, I'll keep the baby for the rest of the weekend. You can study and get in some practise for Monday's meet."

The generous offer took Emily by complete surprise, but she she couldn't let Paige take on the extra work. She had her own schedule to keep to.  
"You have to practise too; I'll pick the baby up tomorrow and work something out about studying-"  
"I'm keeping PJ for the weekend. Listen to your captain, Fields; I'm always right!" Paige joked, drawing a laugh from the other girl.  
"You're something." Emily agreed with a small smile. She stepped forward and gave her a hug, sending Paige's pulse sky rocketing. She felt like her heart was beating faster than a hummingbird's as Emily held on to her. "Thank you. For everything."

"No problem." Paige choked out. She hugged her back, hoping Emily wouldn't notice how tightly she was holding on to her. She had fought her attraction to the other girl in Freshman year. Even when she had finally accepted her own sexuality, she had never thought that Emily would ever like her back in the way she wanted her to. She had convinced herself of that fact for so long that she'd still believed it long after Emily had came out. She had never expected to even be Emily's friend; so the thought of letting herself hope for something more was terrifying and exhilarating at the same time.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: As ever, thanks for reading guys! The response to this fic has been amazing and I really appreciate it. I usually get Tuesdays off work, so I'm going to try and stick to updating Tuesday night / Wednesday morning.**

* * *

"Hey Em, did you forget something?" Hanna greeted her friend as she climbed out of her car empty handed. The blonde was carrying her baby carrier in one hand and her purse in the other. "Wasn't it your turn to have PJ yesterday?"  
"It was supposed to be. I kind of had a mini-melt down Saturday night, so Paige gave me the weekend off." Emily was still embarrassed about the way she'd acted the other night. She'd tried to talk Paige in to letting her take the baby from her on Sunday, but the team captain had point blank refused to allow it.

Emily wasn't sure how the other girl had found time to train for the upcoming meet while she'd been stuck with the infant simulator, she just hoped that it wouldn't effect Paige's performance too much; Emily didn't need that guilt on top of everything else she was dealing with.  
"That was nice of her. See, I told you she's wasn't all that bad!" Hanna pointed out, sounding pretty smug. She had been championing Paige's cause from the start and Emily had to admit she'd been right about the other swimmer. Paige could be pretty nice when she wanted to be.

"I guess you're right... She was actually kind of a lifesaver on Saturday. Maya came by for the rest of her stuff and it was really awkward; but then Paige came over for the baby and she took Maya's things downstairs for me. You should have seen her face, especially when Paige kissed my cheek." Emily laughed. Maya had definitely gotten the wrong idea about her and Paige. "She actually tried calling me over the weekend-"  
"Hold up!" Hanna stopped in her tracks and held a hand up to silence the other girl. "Paige _kissed_ you? When did this happen? And _when_ were you going to tell me about it?"  
"It's not like that!" Emily objected, trying to shrug it off. "It's not even a big deal. It was just on the cheek. I think she was trying to piss Maya off, you know what Paige is like."  
"Paige. Kissed. You!" Hanna wasn't about to let it go, no matter how much Emily tried to play it down.

"Will you stop saying that!" Emily demanded. She nervously looked over her shoulder to make sure that nobody had overheard the mouthy blonde. The last thing she wanted was for a rumour to start about her and Paige. "It was nothing, okay?"  
"Okay." Hanna held her hands up in surrender. "You might want to tell that to your face though..." She smirked, pointing out Emily's flushed cheeks.

Emily rolled her eyes and pointedly ignored her as they headed in to the school. Hanna still had to drop her own baby off at Ms Montgomery's classroom before the first bell, so Emily went along with her. They caught Paige coming out of the classroom just as they arrived. Emily felt even more self-conscious about her flustered cheeks as the other girl greeted her. "Hey, you ready for the meet later?" The team captain looked pretty psyched for it herself; she was practically bouncing on the balls of her feet.

"Totally!" Emily agreed. "I've been practising all weekend. Thanks again for having the baby."  
"No problem." Paige shrugged, like it was no big deal for her to have looked after the robot for the whole weekend. "You can owe me one."  
"Sure; next time you need to get out of a date, just come by the Brew and I'll throw soup all over you." Emily teased, drawing a laugh from the other swimmer.  
"Thanks. I might take you up on that." Paige grinned as she shifted her bag from one shoulder to another. "See you at lunch?"

"Sure. See you then...Wait, did you ask Ms Montgomery what we should do with PJ during the meet? It's after school, and I'm pretty sure we shouldn't have the expensive robot baby anywhere near the pool."  
"Good call. I didn't think to ask. Can you take care of it?" Paige was already walking away as she glanced down at her watch. She had to get to the other side of the school before the first bell.  
"Hey, if you're going to talk to Ms Montgomery anyway, you can drop Beyonce off for me, right? Caleb's waiting for me in the quad." Hanna didn't wait for an answer, and Emily was literally left holding the baby as the blonde flounced off.

"Emily, hi. Didn't Paige just drop your baby off?" Ella smiled as her daughter's friend walked through her classroom door. She was laden down with a baby carrier and a changing bag.  
"She did. This one's Hanna's. Paige actually forgot to mention it, but we've got a meet after class. Could you hold on to PJ until after it's over?"  
"Of course. I'm staying to watch the meet anyway. I'll just "borrow" your wristband. It won't effect your grading."

"You might want to take Paige's band. I think the baby's actually programmed to hate me." Emily huffed, finally voicing her frustrations as she took off her ID band and handed it over. "They're not 'programmed' to hate anybody." Ella laughed the teenager's concerns off. "They're just babies, Emily; they cry and whine for attention all day long, sometimes for no reason. For what it's worth, your grade is fine. Paige is a little out in front of you."  
"She would be." Emily rolled her eyes. Paige was a natural when it came to caring for the infant. She'd had plenty of practise with her two young cousins.

"To be honest Emily, when it comes to you and Paige we're not really concerned with how well you take care of the baby. We're more interested in how the two of you work together. Looking at your results from last week, you and Paige haven't spent much time together with the baby. I know you've set up a routine-"  
"I was actually over at her house this weekend." Emily leapt to her own defence. "We're working together on this. We really are; and I guess Paige isn't so bad."  
"Well that's good to hear. I hope this week's data will reflect just how well you're working together." Ellla beamed. "Oh, and can you tell Hanna that she and Caleb are doing a great job. They've gotten the highest grade in the class so far."  
"Of course they have." Emily mumbled to herself. To Ella she said, "I'll tell her."

The rest of the day passed in a blur, and before long Emily was standing in the locker room, getting ready for the meet. Beside her, Paige was already changed and sitting on the bench in front of their lockers. Neither girl had said a word to each other, but it wasn't anything personal. They all had their own routines and rituals before a meet. Paige was in a world of her own with her earphones in. She was preparing herself for her usual pre-meet address to the other girls. As the team captain, it was up to her to get them going for the competition.

When she was finally ready, Paige shut off her iPod and got to her feet. She shot Emily a confident smile as she moved past her to get to the front of the room. "Alright guys, hustle up!" Paige clapped her hands to get everyone's attention. Emily usually didn't pay much mind to the captain's pep talks, but for once she paused to listen. "I don't need to tell you all how tough the Red Devils are. They're our biggest competition, and we're going to have to work our asses off to pull out a win today; but that's a _good _thing! Rumour has it that there are going to be scouts out there today. We're halfway through the year and this is your chance to get the attention of some top schools; so let's go out there and show some teeth! Go Sharks!" Paige's rousing speech was met with cheers and chants of 'Sharks! Sharks! Sharks!' from the other girls. The nervous silence that had previously filled the locker room was replaced with a buzz of energy.

"You ready to finish what I start, Fields?" Paige asked as she headed back over to her locker, alluding to the fact that Emily was once again acting as anchor in the relay race. She didn't seem too upset about it as she laughed and joked.  
"You bet, Captain." Emily grinned. She should have been nervous as hell with the prospect of scouts, but Paige's good mood was infectious and Emily was more exited than anything else.

Emily was one of the last girls in the locker room as she finished getting changed in to her costume and warm-ups. Paige hung around waiting for her while the other swimmers warmed up out on deck. Emily was just zipping up her jacket as the door opened and a young black woman walked in. She was wearing the opposing team's colours, and Emily recognised her as the Red Devils' captain; Shana Cruz.

Paige seemed to recognise her too, though she looked just as surprised to see her standing in the Sharks' locker room. "Shana, hey-" Her greeting was cut off as the other captain grabbed at her jacket and kissed her, seemingly without warning. Emily quickly averted her eyes, feeling uncomfortable with the sight of Paige and the other girl kissing.  
"Hey you, what happened to that call you promised me?" Shana pulled back with a smug smile, ignoring the glares that were coming her way from the other Sharks; it wasn't every day that a rival swimmer walked in to the locker room and started to make out with their captain.

"I meant to call, I've just been real busy...with the meet and stuff." Paige tried her best not to look Emily's way. The truth was she'd been too busy with Emily and PJ all week to even think about calling the other captain.  
"Stuff, huh?" Shana challenged, her tone mildly amused as her gaze flitted over to Emily.  
"Yeah, stuff." Paige shifted uncomfortably. "And you're not here because I didn't call. If you want to psych me out, you're going to have to do a better job. Em, I'm going to go warm up, I'll catch you out on deck."

"Sure." Emily nodded and watched her go as she finished packing up her locker. Shana didn't seem to be in any hurry to leave though. She held out her hand for Emily.  
"Hey. It's Fields, right? I'm Cruz; my friends call me Shana."  
"Emily." She replied as they shook hands. Emily had seen the Devils' captain in action a few times. She was their strongest swimmer, and it was no surprise she had history with Paige. "You seem nice. If I were you, I wouldn't waste time on waiting for Paige to call you. I don't think she's really the second date type."

"Thanks for the advice, but Paige and I have already _had_ a second date." Shana's lips stretched in to a smirk as she looked Emily up and down in a rather suggestive manner. Emily felt herself growing flustered at the attention. "I'd like another one, but I'm not averse to keeping my options open." The other swimmer stepped in close, putting one of her hand's on Emily's locker and pinning her in.  
"Oh...I should probably go stretch. Good luck out there." Emily ducked under the other girl's outstretched arm as she made her excuses to leave.  
"Want some help stretching?" Shana called after her with the same self assured smirk.

The Devils' captain might not have gotten in to Paige's head, but she'd sure as hell gotten in to Emily's. She was still feeling flustered as she joined Paige and the rest of the team stretching by the poolside. Shana followed her out on deck and blew a kiss in the direction of the Sharks. It wasn't clear who it was aimed at, but it served its purpose in riling the anchor.

"Hey." Paige caught hold of Emily's arm to get her attention. She'd caught her glaring at their rival and knew exactly what was going on. "Head in the game, Fields. Forget about her." It was easier said than done, and Emily found it hard to focus on warming up with Shana so close by. Paige kept a close eye on her as she led the girls through their warm up routines. The anchor managed to pull it together in time for her first race and she wiped the floor with the competition. The early win helped to get her mind back on track. She sat on the bench with her earphones in as she watched the next race.

Emily's mom was working late, and her dad was still on base down in Texas, so there was nobody there to watch her. She'd asked her friends to stay away from the meet on purpose. She already felt pressured enough without having her friends there to distract her. It looked like Paige had done the same, seeing as her dad and her aunt were notably missing from the stalls. The Red Devils were pretty fierce competition and both Emily and Paige had lost a couple of races each, but overall they were doing well. Emily had absolutely killed it in the 200 yard freestyle event, setting a new personal best.

She was definitely starting to feel the burn by the time it came around to the relay race though. Paige could see she was starting to lag and pulled her aside for another pep talk. "Come on Em, this is your last race! I need to know you've got my back; I'm counting on you to make me look good!"  
"Since when?" Emily countered. It wasn't like the fiercely competitive swim captain to admit to needing anyone else.  
"Since always." Paige shrugged as they started removing their warm-ups, getting ready for the relay. "I count on you all the time. You're the backbone of this team, Em. Why do you think I ride you so hard?"

"To be an ass?" Emily answered honestly. She honestly had no idea why, until recently, Paige had been on her case so much.  
"I did it to make sure you were sticking around this time." Paige finally admitted her motivation for riling her. "You quit this team once before; I had to make sure you were committed this time."  
"I am. I told you, I'm focused this time. I'm not going to let anything distract me,"  
"Good." Paige nodded, accepting her at her word. "Now prove it. Get your ass in to gear and be ready to finish this thing for me."  
"Yes _Captain._" Emily laughed, feeling ready to face the biggest event of the meet. Her desire to win was just as much about proving herself to Paige as it was to impress any potential scouts.

The other girl set a good pace as the starter, cutting an impressive swath through the water. Emily had to wait for two other girls to go ahead of her before she could get in the water herself. The Devils were slightly ahead as Emily and Shana lined up on the starting boards. The two anchors were ready to square off against each other, their bodies tense and poised to hit the water. Shana was the first one to dive in, her team mate having reached the ledge first. Emily had some ground to make up once she finally got in to the water. She had to go all out just to catch up to Shana.

She could hear the crowd roaring each time her head popped out of the water, with Paige's voice cheering her on the loudest. Emily summoned up every ounce of adrenaline she had left to inch out ahead of the other anchor. Somehow she made it back to the side, ahead of Shana, claiming another victory for the Sharks. Her team-mates mobbed her the second she pulled herself up of the water.

Paige was the first to reach her, pulling her in for a crushing hug as the rest of the girls surrounded them. She still had an arm around Emily's shoulder as Shana approached them. She'd lost some of her cocksure attitude, but she had the good grace to offer her hand to Emily again. "Nice job out there, Fields. Catch you next time." She shot her a wink, before nodding in Paige's direction. "Don't forget to call me."

There were still a couple of events left of the meet, but Emily's races were done. She broke away from the others to go and fetch the bottle of Gatorade she had in her locker. She heard the door close and then open again behind her and turned with a smile, expecting to see Paige. Instead, she was met by the sight of a girl from the rival team. She was a tall, heavyset, blonde with a serious chip on her shoulder. She had been in the 200 yard freestyle when Emily had obliterated the competition, and she looked like she was itching for a fight.

"I bet you think you're hot stuff, huh bitch?" Emily didn't answer. She wasn't used to confrontation. She had never been in a fight in her life, and she had no desire to change that. "Answer me, dyke!" Emily flinched at that as the blonde moved in closer, getting right up in her face. Her fists were balling at her sides, but she wasn't sure she'd be able to do much with them if the other girl started.

"You shouldn't be in here!" Emily finally spoke up, though her voice was wavering with fear. "What are you going to do about it, Princess?" The blonde Devil just laughed in her face and shoved her. Her smirk quickly vanished as she was grabbed by her ponytail and shoved face first against the nearby lockers. Emily jumped out of the way as Paige growled at the blonde who had attacked her team mate.  
"You know, I'm not usually the jealous type, but only _I_ get to call her that!"

The blonde tried to thrash beneath her, but Paige had a good hold on her hair and kept her pinned down. "You _ever_ touch a Shark again, you're going to get ripped apart, understand _bitch?" _  
"Paige!" Coach Fulton snapped at the young captain as she walked in to the locker room and found one of her star swimmers holding a rival by the back of her throat. Paige's grip actually tightened at the sound of the coach's voice. She had no intention of letting the other girl go, not until Emily stepped forward and gently took hold of her wrist.  
"Paige..."

The two Sharks took a step back, giving the blonde space to turn around. Paige's fists were still clenched, and there was hell fire in her eyes as they narrowed on the other swimmer. "Fields, get back out on deck. You too." Fulton chased Emily and the Devil out so she could speak to Paige on her own. Emily was reluctant to leave. She tried to speak up on Paige's behalf, but Fulton didn't want to hear it.  
"Go on." Paige give her a gentle shove towards the door, and eventually it was just her and Fulton standing in the locker room.

The older woman crossed her arms over her chest as she stared Paige down. "I'm waiting for an explanation."  
"She was attacking Emily! I _had_ to defend her!" Paige was still pumped up for a fight. Adrenaline was coursing through her body and her anger was being directed at the wrong person. She seldom raised her voice at the coach. She had the utmost respect for Fulton. The other woman had helped her to channel all of her pent up anger and frustration in to her swimming, giving her a safe outlet to vent.

"A week ago I was pulling you two apart, now I'm stopping you from getting kicked out for assaulting a visiting student! I thought putting you and Fields on that parenting project would help you two work together, but I had no idea just how _well_ it would work! Maybe I should recommend it to the UN?" Fulton's scathing voice was laced with sarcasm and Paige had to bite her tongue to keep from snapping back.

"What's going on, McCullers?" Fulton demanded. She had known her captain for a long time, and had taken a special interest in her from her freshman year. "I know you've got issues, Paige. I try to make allowances for that-"  
"I never asked you to!" Paige finally snapped and shouted at her. She hated being singled out, or having 'allowances' made over her home life."Just like I never asked to be put with Fields! Everything was fine until you made me work with her..." Paige was physically shaking with anger as she struggled to keep her cool. She felt completely overwhelmed as her emotions bubbled to the surface, creating a toxic mix.

"Paige..." Fulton's voice softened as she took a step towards her favourite student. Paige hated to be touched, especially when she was so worked up, but she relented and allowed the coach to put a hand on each shoulder to steady her. "Tell me what's going on."  
"I've never had a problem with Emily." Paige admitted in a quiet, deflated voice. "I saw her in trouble and I just lost it. I wanted to protect her..."  
"Okay." Fulton let out a sigh as she nodded at the younger girl. "I'll let this slide; but you have to promise me you'll go see your councillor tomorrow. You've come a long way, Paige. You can't let your temper get the better of you-"  
"I will!" Paige hastily agreed. "I mean, I won't let it, and I _will_ see the councillor."

With the matter settled, Paige went back on deck to try and catch five minutes with Emily before the last race. The other girl was safely with her fellow Sharks, crowding around the side of the pool as they watched the 50 yard butterfly event and cheered on their swimmers. Emily spotted Paige coming out of the locker room and started walking towards her, eager to find out what had happened with Fulton. She was too preoccupied to notice the blonde girl coming up behind her.

"Emily!" Paige's yell was lost in the roar of the crowd as the blonde came up alongside the other Shark and deliberately knocked in to her. Paige watched in horror as Emily started falling right before her eyes. As if in slow motion, her side slammed off the edge of the pool before she hit the water. Paige was already running towards her when Emily went in, so she was the first to react. She dived straight in to the pool, almost landing on the girl who was swimming in the closest lane to where Emily had gone in.

It turned out to be Shana. She had abandoned the race when she'd noticed the splash from Emily going in. Emily was probably one of the strongest swimmers in the room, but she'd been caught off guard and had hurt her side pretty badly going in. She was struggling to keep her head above water as she fought through the pain and panic she was feeling. Paige positioned herself so that she could wrap her arm loosely around Emily's neck, keeping her chin tilted back and her face out of the water. Shana followed close beside them and helped to get Emily up the stairs so Fulton and the nurse could see to her.

Paige's blood was boiling as she watched her friend limping over to the bench. Emily was clearly in pain. Pain that Paige could have saved her from, had Fulton not insisted on chewing her out in the locker room. Her sights were firmly set on the blonde who had pushed Emily in as she tried too pull herself up out of the water. Shana gave her a hand, and pulled her in close once she was on deck. "Don't do anything stupid... I'll take care of it."

Paige was still wearing her warm-ups, and soaked to the bone, as she stood glaring at the blonde. The other girl's coach was ripping her a new one for being so clumsy, but what had happened to Emily had been no accident. "Go see your girl." When she made no attempt to move, Shana gave her a push in the direction of the bleachers.

Paige pushed her way through the crowd of people surrounding Emily and dropped down on her knees in front of her. "Are you oka-" She was cut off as the other swimmer lunged forward and threw her arms around her.  
"Thank you!" Emily sobbed in to her neck as she clung tightly to her. Going in to the water so unexpectedly had been terrifying and disorientating.  
"It's okay." Paige soothed and hugged her back, carefully trying to avoid touching her injured side.

"Emily, let's get you to the office and checked out." Fulton gingerly eased the two girls apart and helped Emily to get to her feet so she could go with the nurse. Paige tried to follow after her, but Fulton grabbed hold of her wrist and shook her head. She knew all too well that Paige would fly off the handle if left to her own devices. "You're staying with me McCullers. Walk it off." Paige ignored her completely as she wrenched her arm free and took hold of Emily's hand. She had left her alone once because of the coach, and she wasn't about to make the same mistake twice. Fulton would have to physically drag her away from her friend. In the end, the coach decided to pick her battles carefully and just accompanied her two swimmers to the office. It would be easier to just keep a watchful eye over Paige instead of trying to tear her away from Emily's side.

* * *

"You really should have gone to the hospital." Paige chided as she helped Emily over to her bed. The other girl had been checked over by the school nurse and allowed to leave, but Paige was still convinced she should have gone to the ER. When she had found out neither of Emily's parents were home, she had flat out refused to leave her on her own and they had ended up driving over to Paige's house. In the confusion of what had happened at the meet, they had ended up leaving the baby with Ms Montgomery back at the school. Neither of them had exactly been thinking about their extra credit project as Paige had helped Emily out of the nurse's office and in to her car.

"I'm fine!" Emily insisted and swatted Paige's hands away from her. The pain in her side was getting worse and she didn't need the other girl prodding at it. "Ow!" She tried sitting down on Paige's bed, but a stab of pain shot through right through her side and left her gritting her teeth.  
"Clearly." Paige rolled her eyes. She walked over to her desk and pulled a tube of something out of her drawer.  
"What's that?" Emily eyed the ointment suspiciously.  
"It's poison. I've decided to take out the competition." Paige snapped dryly as she dropped down to her knees by the bed. "It's just muscle rub. It's good stuff, I use it all the time. Now lift up your shirt."

"What? Why?" Emily sat up sharply and let out another groan of pain.  
"Because I'm pretty sure this stuff doesn't absorb through clothing." Paige glared at her. She was trying to be patient, but she was getting sick of Emily thinking the worst of her. "So lift up your shirt."  
"You could at least buy me dinner first." Emily grumbled as she gingerly peeled her shirt up to reveal the deep purple bruising running down the length of her side.

"Jesus, Em." Paige bit down on her lip as she cringed at the sight of the injury. She had known the other girl had been in pain all the way home, but she hadn't guessed how bad it actually was. Her guilt at letting it happen increased ten-fold. "Okay, lie down."  
"Are you always this bossy?" Emily rolled her eyes as she lay down on her good side, giving Paige full access to the affected area.  
"Yes." Paige held her gaze with a smirk as she squeezed some of the ointment straight on to Emily's side. She put a hand on her hip to stop her jumping up from how cold it felt. She carefully massaged the cream in to Emily's skin, trying not to cause her any more distress.

"It's stinging!" Emily hissed, her muscles tensing.  
"It'll just last a second. It goes really cold." Paige reassured her as she carried on rubbing the ointment in long after it was necessary. The other girl's skin was soft and warm against her touch and Paige couldn't get enough of it. She didn't want to pull her hand away any time soon, but she knew she had no choice. "Better?" She asked once she finally let her hand drop to her side.

"Much." Emily sighed with relief as she curled up on Paige's bed. The bruising was still sore, but the cream was helping to ease the deep ache in the muscles in her side. "Can I just lay here for a second?" She felt dog tired and Paige's bed was undeniably comfy. With her head buried in Paige's pillow, and the other swimmer's hand resting on the small of her back, she felt her eyes closing over of their own accord.  
"Sure. I'll come get you when dinner's done." Paige reached for the comforter at the end of her bed and placed it carefully over Emily; she was pretty much unconscious as Paige brushed her still wet hair out of her face and pressed her lips softly against Emily's forehead.

She slipped quietly out of the room before pulling her phone out of her pocket. "Hey, it's me. Have you taken care of it? Well you'd better! I swear to god, Shana, if I get my hands on that girl and she's dead!"


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Sorry for the late/short update, I've had a hectic week at work so haven't had much chance to write. The next chapter should be a lot longer.**

* * *

Emily Fields frowned at her reflection in the full length mirror hanging on her closet door. All down her left side was badly bruised, a result of her fall the previous day. Her skin had taken on a garish purple hue, and was sore and tender to the touch. Emily was having trouble finding something comfortable to wear. Everything she'd tried on since stepping out of the shower had just served to irritate her side. She was just pulling on a loose fitting jersey when she heard her mom calling up to her. "Emily, Paige is here!"

Emily frowned again, this time at the clock on her bedside table. She had no idea what Paige would be doing at her house so early in the morning. The other girl was supposed to be training in the school pool from 6am; it said so right on the schedule that was taped to Emily's mirror. She quickly tied her hair back and headed downstairs to see what Paige wanted. She'd dropped Emily off at home the night before, once Pam had finally gotten off work, and she hadn't mentioned anything about coming over in the morning. The other girl looked a damn sight better than Emily felt.

Paige was dressed in ripped denim jeans and a red plaid shirt, and her hair was tied back in a simple plait. "Hey, how you doing? How's the side-" She started to greet her, but Emily quickly cut her off. Her eyes widened as she shook her head and looked past Paige for any sign of her mother.  
"Keep it down, will you? I don't want my mom finding out."  
"You didn't tell her?" Paige asked disbelievingly. Emily had barely been able to stand up straight when she'd dropped her off the night before, so Paige had no idea how she'd managed to hide the pain she'd been in from her mom.

"No. I didn't want to worry her." Emily shrugged, making sure to keep her voice low. "I just went straight to bed...what are you doing here anyway?" She tried to change the subject, in case her mom was hovering nearby.  
"I'm taking you to school." Paige answered like it should have been obvious. "Consider me your chauffeur for the rest of the week; or at least until your side is better."

"Thanks, I should be good to drive tomorrow though. I'll just grab my stuff." Emily went back upstairs to get her book bag, leaving Paige waiting in the hall.  
Pam had been milling around in the kitchen, but she made a beeline for Paige the second her daughter's friend was left on her own. "It was nice of you to come pick Emily up. Are you bringing her home too?"  
"Yeah. We've got a class with Ms Montgomery after school, so I figured it would make more sense if we car pooled." Paige lied with ease, respecting Emily's wish to keep her mom in the dark about her injured side.

"Why don't you join us for dinner?" Pam suggested out of nowhere, catching Paige off guard.  
"Uh...sure. I'd love to."  
"Love to what?" Emily asked as she came back down the stairs, joining Paige and her mom by the door.  
"Paige is coming over for dinner with us tonight." Pam answered cheerfully. She had been asking Emily to invite Paige over all weekend, and she seemed pleased at having finally been able to collar the teenager on her own. Pam had definitely taken a liking to Paige after the way she'd handled her run in with Maya the other day.

"If my mom bullied you in to coming over for dinner tonight, you really don't have to." Emily waited until she was climbing in to the other girl's car before bringing it up.  
"Are you kidding? I never turn down a free meal." Paige tore her attention from the road long enough to flash a grin Emily's way.

Paige drove right up to the steps outside of school to drop Emily off. "Can you go check in with Ms Montgomery? I've got to go see my councillor."  
"Councillor? Is everything okay?"  
"Yeah, it's all good. Fulton just made me agree to it after what happened yesterday." Paige shrugged off the other girl's concern with an easy smile. "I'll go deal with the councillor thing, and you can go check we're not having our daughter taken from us for child abandonment."

Emily was walking slowly as she made her way to Ella's classroom. The pain in her side was worse than she had let on to Paige, and she had to stop a couple of times on the way to catch her breath. She found Ms Montgomery sitting at her desk as she walked in to her classroom. "Emily, hi. How are you feeling? That was some fall you took yesterday."

"Tell me about it." Emily clutched at her side as she perched against one of the desks in the front row. "I'm sorry we left you with PJ yesterday. Paige drove me home after the nurse checked me over, and we kind of forgot all about the doll."  
"It's fine, I just shut her down for the night. She's in her case, you or Paige can just pick her up after class...actually, I was talking with coach Fulton after the meet yesterday, she's really impressed with how you and Paige have handled this project. If you'd like, you can call it quits?"

Emily was momentarily taken back by the offer to drop out of the program. She floundered for a few moments, thinking it over. "Really? But there's only a few days left." It was Tuesday morning and the project would be over by Friday. "And our grade is pretty good, right? I mean, the extra credit could come in useful." Emily rattled off a list of reasons for staying in the class, while trying to ignore the most poignant one; spending time with Paige.  
"Well, why don't you talk it over with Paige and let me know what you two decide?"

"I will." Emily nodded in agreement before making her way back out of the class. She bumped in to Paige in the hallway, quite literally.  
"Easy, Fields." Paige caught hold of her, steadying the other girl on her feet as she grimaced in pain. "Everything okay? Is Montgomery going to call the cops on us for child endangerment?"

"Uh, no. Everything's fine. We can pick PJ up after class." Emily tactfully avoided bringing up the offer Ella had made her. She wasn't sure why, but the thought of them going back to the way they had been didn't sit right with her. She'd seen a new side to Paige McCullers, and she was keen to see more.

"Great. Let's get you to your home room." Paige was still carrying Emily's book bag along with her own, and she refused to hand it over until they were outside of her home room. It carried on like that for the rest of the day, with Paige somehow turning up outside of all of Emily's classes before the bell had even sounded. Emily found it kind of sweet at first, but she soon got exasperated at being babysat. Paige pulling her seat out for her at lunch was the last straw.

"I can do it myself!" She snapped at the other girl, causing the rest of her friends to look up at them from around the table. "Sorry." She added quietly as she took the offered seat and slumped against the lunch table.  
"No problem." Paige brushed her apology off as she took the empty seat beside her. She knew Emily was only lashing out because she was hurting; it was something Paige understood all too well. She tried her best not to fuss over Emily so much for the rest of the day, though she still flat out refused to let her carry her own bag.

"Are you sure you're okay for this? I'm sure Ms Montgomery wouldn't mind you skipping?" Hanna suggested to Emily as they sat down for their last extra credit class. Ella had asked them to meet in one of the science labs, so Paige and Emily were sitting at one bench, while Hanna and Caleb sat at another one behind them.  
"I'm fine!" Emily insisted, trying not to wince as she turned around to face her friend. "Can everyone just stop fussing over me? It's just a bruise!"  
"Yeah, a bruise that covers three ribs." Paige piped up, earning a scowl from her team mate.

They didn't have long to bicker as Ella called for their attention and started the class. Paige was only half listening to her as she doodled absently in her notepad. She wasn't exactly depending on the extra credit from the class, and most of her final grade would come from her work with the doll anyway. Something the teacher said caught her attention though, snapping her out of the daze. "Every hour in the US, a baby is born with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome."

Paige shifted in her chair, resting her head against the palm of her hand as Ella continued. "Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome is a collection of symptoms of withdrawal in babies. Children born to drug dependant mothers often suffer fever, blotching of the skin, excessive crying, problems feeding...there are a whole host of health issues." Paige was staring down at her notepad so hard she was surprised it didn't burst in to flames. Her foot started tapping nervously under the desk, caching Emily's attention. She watched the other girl closely, picking up on her unease as Ella carried on talking about the impact of taking drugs during pregnancy.

"...there are long-term health effects to consider too, such as issues with sight, impaired cognitive skills, and even hyperactivity." Paige seemed pretty hyperactive herself as she sat tapping her foot ten to the dozen. She kept her gaze down low, refusing to acknowledge the looks of concern that Emily was shooting her way. Her leg kept knocking in to Emily's, distracting her and making it hard to concentrate.

Emily took matters in to her own hands, quite literally, as she slipped her hand under the table and placed it down on Paige's knee; her leg stilled instantly. Paige's entire body tensed as she took a sharp breath. Emily could understood why she was so anxious. If her mom had been taking drugs while pregnant with Paige, then Ella was pretty much describing what the girl had gone through as an infant.

Paige seemed a lot calmer, so Emily kept her hand where it was. At some point her fingers started moving, absently rubbing circles in to the side of Paige's knee. It went from soothing to distracting in ten seconds flat. "I need the bathroom." Paige pushed back her stool and made a beeline for the door, without waiting to be excused. She ran straight to the nearest bathroom and leant over one of the sinks, feeling like she was about to heave. Her throat felt like it was closing up, and the floor beneath her was spinning. It was the early onset of a panic attack, and Paige was trying her hardest to fight it.

"Take deep breaths." It became even harder to keep her cool as she felt Emily's hand on the small of her back; the very last thing she needed was for the other girl to see her at her weakest. Paige struggled to do as Emily said. She knew that she was right, she had to get her breathing under control. That wasn't going to happen while Emily was still touching her, so she pulled away and slumped down on to the floor, tucking her head between her knees.  
It took a few minutes, but she managed to ride out the attack.

"Are you okay? Do you need me to get someone?" Emily had figured out early on that the other girl needed her space, so she kept a respectable distance as she knelt down beside her.  
"No. I'm good." Paige shook her head. Her cheeks were flushed and burning with embarrassment. She'd had a handful of panic attacks before, but they seldom happened in the middle of class. "I just need a second...You must think I'm a total dork for freaking out like that."  
"I don't think that. No one could blame you for getting a little overwhelmed back there." Emily insisted softly. She felt a wave of guilt hit her for not having told Paige they could drop out of the program. "With your mom and everything..."

"Do you know that the children of addicts are in the highest risk group for becoming addicts themselves?" Paige asked unexpectedly. "You probably missed that little nugget of information coming after me. It's a genetic predisposition, just like cancer."  
"Paige, you're not your mom." Emily risked scooting forward and placing her hand over Paige's. "If that's what you're worried about, you're not _her."  
"_You don't even know me." Paige countered, though her tone wasn't hostile; it was more apathetic.

"You don't exactly make it easy." Emily argued back. She bit at her lip before continuing, taking both of the other girl's hands in her own. "I _want_ to get to know you, Paige. Working with you hasn't been all that bad; sure, you're still a pain in the ass half the time, but you're fun too. I want...I want us to be friends." The admission took Paige by surprise. It was hard for her to focus on anything other than Emily's hands.  
"Friends?" She repeated, the word leaving a bitter taste on her tongue. She wanted so much more than friendship from Emily. It had taken the whole of freshman year for Paige to figure that out. She'd been taken with the other girl since their very first meeting, at try outs for the swim team.

At first she had thought she wanted to be Emily's friend, but before long she had figured out she wanted more than that. Paige had long ago resigned herself to the fact that she was never going to get the girl; at least not the one she wanted. "Being friends sounds good to me." She finally relented with a small smile.

"Great." Emily beamed back in return. "My first official act as your friend will be to go tell Ms Montgomery that you're sick and I'm taking you home."  
"You don't have to do that. I'm fine." Paige pushed herself back up to her feet and wiped at her face.

"Glad to hear it, but I still want to get out of here, and you're the perfect excuse."  
"Happy to help." Paige laughed, feeling more like herself as she moved to hold the bathroom door open for Emily. "You get PJ, I'll get the car."

After ditching their after school class, the two girls drove back to Emily's house for dinner. They sat up in her room while they waited for Pam to call them down. The smell of home cooked food was lingering in the air as Paige leafed through her English notebook. She was curled up on the window seat, while Emily was sitting on her bed. They were sitting in a comfortable silence as they studied. The other girl had tactfully avoided bringing anything up about Paige's mom.

She pulled an envelope out of her notebook and seemed to mull something over as she ran her fingers over it. "What's that?" Emily looked over and caught sight of the envelope, making Paige's decision for her.  
"It's from my mom. She wanted to let me know she's clean and sober now. She's looking to make amends."  
"Are you going to write her back?" Emily got up and walked over to the window seat, taking a seat beside her. "I mean, if she's trying to reach out-"  
"This isn't the first letter I've gotten." Paige tossed the envelope aside with a scowl. "It's not even the second. I've lost count of how many times she's tried to come back in to my life, making promises about how everything's going to be different...it never is."

"I'm sorry." Emily shifted without warning and wrapped her arms around her. Paige stiffened, not used to being quite so intimate with the other girl. She allowed herself a moment to relax in to Emily's touch, but the embrace didn't last for long. Paige's phone started to ring, distracting her.  
"Hello?" She greeted whoever was on the other end of the phone as Emily pulled away and sat back down on her bed. "Hey yourself. What? Uh, sure. Wait a sec, I'll just check with my baby momma." She put the phone to her shoulder as she asked Emily if she would mind taking the baby the following night. When she agreed, Paige confirmed her plans.

"Baby momma. I think I prefer _Princess." _Emily rolled her eyes at her._ "_Was that Brandy calling for a second date?"  
"Uh, no. It was Shana, actually." Paige admitted sheepishly as she pocketed her phone.  
"Oh. Are you two going out?" Emily tried to sound nonchalant about asking, but she had to admit she was surprised. Paige and Shana had already been out twice before, the fact that they were going on a third date suggested it was something pretty serious; at least by Paige's standards.  
"Yeah. I mean, sort of. I'm taking her out for dinner as a thank you."

"For what?" Emily enquired. She had a feeling she already knew the answer.  
"She sorted out that girl who messed with you yesterday-"  
"Paige! You promised you would leave it!"  
"And I kept my promise! _I _didn't do anything." Paige protested as the other girl went off on one at her. "For what it's worth she's still breathing, which is more than she deserves. Shana just got her kicked off the team for the rest of the season. She's a junior, so she'll get another chance next year; but I'm damn sure she's learnt a valuable lesson about messing with a shark."

"Did you mean what you said yesterday? About only teasing me all the time to make sure I'm committed to the team." It was an odd time to bring it up, but it had been praying on Emily's mind all day. "Because I kind of always thought it was personal, like you hated me or something. To be honest, if I thought anyone was going to throw me in the pool, my money would have been on you." She ducked her head and nervously brushed her hair back behind her ear, worried that Paige would agree with her.

"I _never _hated you." She dropped on to the bed beside Emily and took hold of her hands, squeezing them tightly. "I might have been an ass to you sometimes, but I would never have hurt you, Em; and I never will..." Paige pulled back as she realised she was coming off a little intense. She let Emily's hands drop.

_Friends. Just friends. _The mantra was on constant repeat in her head as she took a step back from Emily's bed and moved back over to the window seat, where it was safe. She forced a smile she didn't feel as she picked up her notebook again. "We're Sharks; we look after our own, _Princess._"


	10. Chapter 10

"Are you sure you don't want some of this? It's good." Hanna held up a forkful of pie in front of Emily, but the other girl brushed it off as she nursed her coffee.  
"No thanks. I just ate dinner with my mom and Paige."  
"Dinner with your mom, huh? Seems serious." Hanna joked, earning a scowl.  
"It's not like that." Emily bristled. Paige had dropped her off at the Brew after dinner, still acting as her personal chauffeur whilst she was injured. Hanna had invited her to join them for coffee, but Paige had taken off to get in her evening run.

"I guess you're right...Paige is hardly the serious type." Hanna shrugged indifferently.  
"Have you noticed her hanging out with any girls in particular?" Emily quizzed, her question coming out of left field. She couldn't forget what Paige had said about never having asked a girl out, despite wanting to. Emily just couldn't get Paige's mystery girl out of her head.  
"Other than you?" Hanna teased. "You two are practically joined at the hip these days."

"I'm serious, Han! I think Paige really likes someone, but she won't tell me who it is." At first Emily thought it might have been Shana, but Paige hadn't seemed overly enthused about the prospect of going on another date with the other swimmer. "I figured you and Paige are close, so maybe you'd know?"  
"Sorry." Hanna shook her head. "I never really see Paige with anyone, except maybe the girls on the swim team? I don't think she has that many friends. I mean she's popular and everything, but she seems a bit of a loner... I guess that's why she and Caleb get on so well."

The more Emily thought about it, the more she realised Hanna was right. She seldom saw Paige with anyone other than the girls on the team. It was a little sad to think about, that someone as outgoing as Paige could be so lonely. Emily made a conscious decision there and then, to make an effort to keep up her new-found friendship with the other girl.

"Emily?" She looked up as she heard someone calling her name, and noticed Paige's aunt making her way towards her. Sara had the baby cuddled against her chest as she looked around frantically. "Have you seen Paige? I've tried calling her, but she isn't answering her cell."  
"She dropped me off about half an hour ago. I think she said she was going for a run. Is everything okay?"

"Not really." Sara's cheeks were flustered, and her brow was creased with a frown, making her look a lot older than her twenty-four years. "Josh is running a fever. I need to take him to the doctor, but Nick's working late and I can't get hold of Paige to take Nathan for me."  
"I could take him?" Emily suggested, seeing just how desperate the older woman was. Her offer didn't seem to settle Sara any though. She was probably thinking back to Saturday night, when Emily had broken down over PJ crying all afternoon. "I'm much better with real babies than I am with dolls; and I can try calling Paige again when she's finished with her run."

"Thanks, Emily. You're a lifesaver!" Sara finally relented as she handed the squirming baby boy over. "He's just been fed, and his diaper's been changed. I'll keep trying to get hold of Paige, and I'll make sure she takes him off your hands as soon as she can. Be good little guy." The doting mother bent over to press a kiss to her youngest son's cheek. She left his changing bag on the table before rushing back out to her car. The infant giggled as he pulled at Emily's loose hair, completely unaffected by being left with her.

"Hey, if Paige is out running, then who has _your _baby?" Hanna quizzed, pointing out PJ's absence. Emily's wristband was missing too.  
"My mom's got it. She offered to watch the baby when I said Paige was bringing me to the Brew...she might not have realised Paige wasn't staying." Emily shrugged sheepishly. Her mom hadn't exactly been subtle when it came to letting Emily know she approved of the other girl; she had fussed over Paige all through dinner, asking her question after question. To her credit, Paige had taken it all in her stride.

"Wow. You might want to watch your mom doesn't turn in to Paige's latest conquest." Hanna laughed, but her joke fell flat with the other girl.  
"Who has she even slept with? I know she's got a reputation, but like, who has she been with?" Emily demanded, remembering Shana's offhand remark about Paige not being quite the player everyone else thought she was.  
"Um..." It was harder to come up with a name than Hanna had first thought it would be. "I heard she did it with Dana Anton...but she still goes to Purity Club. Maybe it doesn't count with a girl?"

"It counts. Trust me." Emily snorted indignantly as she bounced Nathan up and down on her knee to try and settle the squirming baby. He was starting to grow bored. "Wait, why do _you _still go to Purity Club? You and Caleb do it all the time-"

"Whoa! Totally inappropriate conversation in front of the baby!" Paige appeared behind Emily and the infant's face lit up at the sight of her. His chubby little arms started reaching up her as his legs kicked out against Emily's chest; she gladly handed him straight over as Paige took a seat on the couch beside her. "Speaking of which, why do you have my cousin, Fields?"  
"Sara had to take Josh to the doctor. Didn't you get her messages?"

"What? No!" Paige held the baby with one arm as she pulled her phone out of her jacket pocket, and cursed when she found it on silent, and a ton of missed calls on the screen. "What happened? Is he okay-"  
"He had a temperature. I don't think it was serious though. She just wanted him checked over." Emily did her best to calm the other girl down as she struggled to get through to her aunt. Nathan was starting to grow restless again, the novelty of seeing Paige having worn off.

The teenager's fears were quickly resolved as she got a text from her aunt, telling her Josh just had an ear infection and that they'd be home soon. Paige settled down after the news and focused on entertaining her cousin with the toggles from her hoodie. For some reason, Hanna thought that was the best time to bring up her and Emily's earlier conversation. "Hey Paige, do you know Dana Anton?" Emily almost choked on a mouthful of coffee as the blonde outright asked Paige about the girl she was supposed to have had sex with.

Paige's face scrunched in concentration, before she eventually shook her head. "I don't think so. Who is she?"  
"Just a girl from Purity Club." Hanna shrugged it off.  
"Why do you even still go there?" Paige asked, repeating Emily's question.  
"It's not like I can just quit! I'd look like a total slut!" Hanna objected, ignoring the looks the other girls were giving her as they tried to stifle their laughter.  
"Whatever you do, don't try and give back your promise ring; that doesn't end well!" Paige warned, with mock seriousness that was betrayed by a wide grin.

"Ha. Ha." Hanna rolled her eyes at her. "I don't recall seeing _you _there, Paige."  
"Yeah, well, I figured it would be a little condescending if I joined. Maybe Fields could come with you?"  
"Yeah, right!" Hanna smirked, getting a sharp look from her friend; which instantly sobered her. "Well it's been fun, babysitting and all, but I've got a baby of my own to get back to. See you guys tomorrow." The blonde said her goodbyes, leaving Paige and Emily sitting together. Neither of them made any attempt to move on to the other sofa, which Hanna had just vacated.

"It's kind of weird, having a baby that actually moves." Emily joked. "He has a really great temperament too."  
"Yeah, Josh was the total opposite. All that kid did was cry. He only ever settled for me. Sara used to drive over in the middle of the night for me to get him to sleep...I was like eleven or something." Paige shook her head, though she was smiling fondly. It was clear to see just how important her family was to her. "I can't believe we have to give PJ back in a few days. Do you think Ms Montgomery would let us keep her?"

"I doubt it... Let's just pretend she's going off to college." Emily suggested with a wry smile. "To study Art History at Brown."  
"Please." Paige scoffed, shaking her head in disagreement. "She's going to Stanford to study Law! Maybe our youngest can go to Brown."  
"Really? And just how many kids are _we _having?" Emily instantly picked up on the other girl's slip, and teased her for it. Paige blushed, but she made no attempt to backtrack.

"Tons; we can work out the specifics later." She shrugged with a sly grin. "You know, we should celebrate. I mean, who would have thought _we_ would get through two weeks of co-parenting?"  
"What did you have in mind?"  
"There's a Zombie marathon on at the movie theatre, Friday night?" Paige suggested, hoping the other girl would agree to go with her. Part of her was worried that she and Emily would slip back in to their old ways and start fighting again; Paige didn't want that happening.  
"Sounds good." Emily nodded in agreement.  
"Awesome." Paige's grin stretched from ear to ear. "Friday then; it's a date."

* * *

"Are you sure you're okay to have the baby again tonight? I could swing by later and pick her up?" Paige fussed over her fellow Shark as she carried PJ towards her car. She was planning on dropping Emily off before going home to get ready for her dinner with Shana.  
"Paige, I told you it's fine! You had it all weekend. I can take PJ tonight and you can have her tomorrow." Emily insisted. She was all too aware that she could have gotten rid of the baby altogether if she'd just told Paige they were allowed to drop out of the project. "And I can carry my own bag!" She protested for the dozenth time that day. Paige had once again refused to let her carry anything; not even her lunch tray.

"I'm sure you can." Paige replied with a condescending smile as she fastened PJ's car seat in to the back. She tossed their book bags on to the back seat, before joining Emily up front. Paige was just pulling open her door, when a familiar, old, blue Mustang parked up beside her car.

Shana was leaning casually against the wheel with a smirk. "Hey, McCullers. Looking good."  
"Hey, Shana." Paige greeted her nervously. She seemed to be almost caught off guard by the other girl's presence. It wasn't the first time Emily had noticed Paige's easy going demeanour vanishing around Shana. "Weren't we supposed to be meeting at the Grill, in like an hour?"

"We are. I just wanted to drop by and make sure you're not going to bail on me again. Hi Emily." She looked past Paige to greet her passenger.  
"Hey." Emily gave her a half-hearted wave back. It wasn't that she had a real problem with the other swimmer, Shana had after all helped to get her out of the water the other day; something about the rival swimmer just unsettled her.  
"How are you feeling? Paige said your side got pretty beat up." Shana's face was marred with genuine concern as she asked Emily how she was doing.

"I'm doing fine, thanks. Paige just likes to exaggerate." Emily answered with a strained smile. She felt a surge of unfounded anger at the thought of Paige discussing anything about her with Shana.  
"That's good to hear. If you're feeling up for it, I'm having a party Saturday night; feel free to come along."  
"Uh, thanks. I might." Emily had no intention of going to a party hosted by a Red Devil, but she didn't want to come off as rude by refusing the offer outright.

"Great, hopefully I'll see you Saturday. Paige, I'll see you in an hour." As Shana drove off, Paige finally climbed in to the car. The easy going banter that had been going on between the two girls before Shana had shown up was gone, leaving an awkward silence in its wake. Paige seemed preoccupied as she drummed her fingers against the wheel, waiting for the traffic outside of the school to thin out.

"So you're headed to the Grill?" Emily tried to make conversation as the car inched along the road.  
"Yeah." Paige didn't offer much more than that up. She was practically silent for the whole journey home. Emily had never seen her so quiet before.

"You know, I could have made my own way home if you'd wanted to go with Shana. You only had to say."  
"What?" Paige frowned as she pulled up outside of the other girl's house. "Oh. No. It's fine. I said I'd drive you." She forced a smile as she unbuckled her belt. She seemed to perk up a bit as she followed Emily up the steps of her front porch. "Sorry I've been a little out of it. I just wasn't expecting Shana to show up like that."

"It's fine." Emily shrugged Paige's apology off as she took PJ's carrier from her, and placed it down on the floor in the hallway. "Just give her a chance tonight. No forgetting your wallet, or faking an illness."  
"I'll try not to." Paige laughed, her mood lightening a little bit. "Pick you up in the morning?"  
"You really don't have to-"  
"I want to." Paige cut off her protests. "It's no trouble."  
"You've already missed a bunch of training for me." Emily pointed out, feeling guilty for disrupting her training schedule.  
"Look at it this way, I'm just giving you a chance to catch up." Paige offered her a wink. "I'll see you in the morning, Fields."

Within the hour, Paige was walking up to the Grill. She'd showered and changed in to a clean shirt, ready for her 'date'. "Hey babe, right on time." Shana was waiting by the door, and she greeted the other girl with a hug and a light kiss. They walked inside the Grill, arm in arm as the waitress showed them to their table.

"Oh god..." Paige muttered under her breath as she caught sight of Hanna and her mom at the table across from them. She took the seat with her back to the blonde, hoping she wouldn't notice her any time soon. Sadly, Hanna spotted her straight away.  
"Paige! Hi!" The blonde came bouncing right over to her table. "You must be Shana, right? Thank you so much for helping get Em out of the water the other day. I can't believe that _bitch_ from your team pushed her-"

"Hanna." Paige cut off the other girl's rambling as politely as she could. Thankfully, Shana didn't seem to be fazed by it.  
"Trust me, I took care of it. She won't be bothering your friend anymore; I actually just invited Emily over to my house for a party on Saturday night. You should come along."  
"Thanks, I will!" Hanna beamed, obviously enjoying the easy smile that Paige's date was sending her way. "I'll make sure to drag Em along. She's been such a bore since she and Maya broke up, a night out will be good for her."  
"My thoughts exactly. Nice meeting you Hanna."  
"You too." Hanna was grinning as she walked back to her table, shooting Paige a less than discreet thumbs-up at her choice of dates.

"Sorry about that." Paige sighed with a shake of her head. "Hanna's kind of...full on."  
"A girl after my own heart." Shana laughed. "The three of you should definitely come over Saturday. I meant what I said, I don't want there to be any hard feelings with Emily."  
"I dunno. Saturday nights are kind of family nights. I think my dad might flip if I don't stay home."

"Right. Got to stay home with the wife and the kid, huh?" Shana teased. She knew all about the project Paige and Emily had been forced in to.  
"Actually, we're giving the baby back on Friday."

"What about the wife?" Shana was trying her best to sound casual about it, but she was clearly testing the waters; trying to determine just how in to the other girl Paige really was. The Shark dropped her gaze to her clenched hands on top of the table as she shrugged. Being around Shana always unnerved her. The rival swimmer had a knack for seeing through her front. It was unsettling, yet comforting at the same time; there was no need to put on an act around someone who could see right through it.

Maybe that was part of the reason Paige had first agreed to a date with the captain of a rival swim team. The two girls had plenty of common, including a healthy competitive nature, and Shana was definitely an attractive girl. There was only one problem with her, and it was the same problem Paige had with every other girl she tried to get involved with; they weren't Emily Fields.

"I thought Emily was straight, but _Maya_ doesn't sound much like a guy's name." Shana mused, leaving Paige cursing Hanna's big mouth. "How come you've never asked her out?"  
"Too much water under the bridge." Paige shrugged again. The truth was, it was easier to live with the _thought_ of Emily rejecting her; rather than having the girl she'd been crushing on for so long throwing her feelings back in her face.

"Since when was a Shark afraid of a little water?" Shana challenged. "Don't get me wrong, I'd rather you were out on a date with _me, _and not her; but I get the feeling she's on your mind regardless of who you're out with. Am I right?"

* * *

"Paige?" It was late when Emily's phone started to ring, with Paige's name flashing up on the screen. Her mom had gone to bed hours earlier, and Emily was curled up in bed watching a movie.  
"Hey, Fields. I didn't wake you did I? Jeez, it's later than I though, sorry...I shouldn't have called-"

"It's fine." Emily interrupted the other girl's anxious rambling. "I'm actually in the middle of watching a movie; it's _Child's Play, _so I'm probably not sleeping again. I'm actually this close to locking PJ in my closet...and I'm pretty sure it's moved, like twice." Paige chuckled softly down the other end of the line at her. Emily's eyes closed over as she tried not to think about the fluttering it brought about in the pit of her stomach.

"It's not funny!" Emily's lips curled up in to a smile as she paused the movie she was watching; about a doll possessed by the spirit of a murderer.  
"Sorry." She could almost hear Paige's grin. "Want me to swing by and grab the baby? I'm not that far away."  
"That'd be great." Emily bit nervously at her lip as she glanced at the baby carrier sitting on her desk. The horror movie buff wasn't easily scared, but she'd definitely made the wrong choice in watching a movie about a killer doll on her own; in the dark. "Text me when you're nearby. My mom's asleep, so we need to be quiet."

"No problem. I'll be over in five." Paige wasn't kidding when she said she was close. Emily had barely started playing the movie again before her phone went off again a few minutes later, letting her know she was outside. As she was climbing out of bed to get the door, she realised she was only wearing an oversized T-shirt. Emily made a U-turn, intending to grab some sweats to pull on, but a soft knocking at her window stopped her. She paused, wondering if she'd actually heard it or not. The tapping came again.

"Paige?" Emily frowned as she pulled open her curtains and found her perched on her window ledge. "Couldn't you have just used the door, like normal people?" She pulled the window up and stepped back to let Paige inside.  
"I figured it was quieter than the door." Paige shrugged. "Also, it's really easy to climb up there. You should lock your window."  
"Thanks for the advice." Emily reached behind her and latched the window shut. "You're using the door on the way out."  
"Spoil sport." Paige chuckled. She dropped on to Emily's bed, apparently in no hurry to take PJ and leave.

"How did your date go?" Emily sat down beside her, pulling the covers over her bare legs.  
"Oh, it was great... We doubled-dated with Hanna and her mom. Also, I don't think you have a choice about Saturday now. Shana invited Hanna."  
"Not her mom, too?" Emily was struggling to bite back a smirk as Paige rolled her eyes at her. She made herself comfortable as she stretched out on Emily's bed and glanced over at the movie playing on her TV.

"Laugh it up, Fields! I have family night on Saturday, so you're on your own-"  
"You're not leaving me with them!" Emily protested, tugging on Paige's shirt as she covered her face with her arm. She was trying to stifle a yawn, but Emily caught it. Taking a closer look at the other girl, she realised just how tired she was. "Are you sure you're okay to take the baby? You look exhausted."  
"I've been getting up at 3am to swim before picking you up." Paige shrugged. "It's no big deal."  
"Paige! You didn't need to do that!"

"I wanted to." She mumbled, her eyes closing over of their own accord. It was close to midnight and she'd barely been home for half an hour when she'd called Emily. She was glad the other girl still hadn't asked her why she had called in the first place; she wasn't sure she could think of an excuse.

Emily's room was warm and the lights were off, making it almost impossible for Paige to keep her eyes open. "You're not driving home like that. You can stay here tonight."  
"What about the doll? I thought you were too scared to have it here?" The prospect of spending the night in Emily's room had Paige's eyes snapping open again.

"I'm locking it in the closet." Emily did just that as she got up from the bed. She pulled out some bed things for the other girl to wear, before she wedged her desk chair under the handle, trapping the doll inside. "You can wear these." Emily handed the clothes over.

"Thanks." Paige took them and started changing by the side of the bed. Despite changing in front of each other dozens of times in the locker room, Emily looked away bashfully.  
"Are you okay topping and tailing?" She asked once Paige had finished changing. The other girl shrugged back at her. She was so tired she could fall asleep on a bed of nails; of course she'd rather be spooning, but she didn't think that suggestion would go down very well.

"No problem." Paige grabbed a pillow, and tossed it down the other side of bed with a sleepy smile, trying to hide how nervous she was to be lying inches away from her crush. She wasn't sure she could get any closer to the edge without falling off.

At some point during the night, something woke Paige up. She'd only been asleep for a few hours, so she was groggy as her eyes slowly opened. It took her a moment to realise the clock on the bedside table wasn't her own, and neither was the table. Panicked by waking up in a strange place, she sat bolt upright, looking around wildly until her eyes landed on Emily. She was knelt down by the open closet, trying to soothe the crying baby in her arms. The sound of it must have been what woke Paige up in the first place.

She pushed her hair back out of her face as she settled back down on her side, watching Emily with the baby. She was kneeling on the floor, with her bed shirt riding up her thighs, and her long dark curls spilling over her shoulder. Paige closed her eyes over again as she felt an all too familiar longing in the pit of her stomach. Her insides felt like they were twisting up as she fought the urge to go over to Emily; to climb on to her lap, brush her hair away from her neck and plant soft, tender kisses along the column of the other girl's throat.

Paige wanted to close her eyes and slip back in to the sweet oblivion of sleep; but PJ wasn't showing any signs of settling down any time soon. Emily was holding her all wrong. Growling quietly in to her pillow, she opened her eyes again and pushed the covers aside. Emily looked up in desperation as the other girl padded over to her. Paige took the baby from her, cradling its head and holding it against her chest as she began gently rocking it. It quietened almost immediately. "That's so not fair." Emily rolled her eyes and followed her back over to the bed. She'd been sitting with the stupid doll for close to twenty minutes, trying to get it to shut up before it could wake the other girl.

"At least we can still get a few hours before school." Emily slipped back under the covers, unconsciously scooting closer over to Paige's side of the bed, which wasn't so cold.  
"Hmm...it might be an idea for me to skip breakfast with your mom." Paige pointed out, reminding her that she wasn't actually supposed to be there. Emily hadn't thought that far ahead.  
"Okay...Maybe you're leaving out through the window after all."


	11. Chapter 11

"Hey, Fields. You come to say goodbye?" Paige grinned as she walked up to the other girl. She was waiting for her by Ms Montgomery's classroom. Hanna was nowhere in sight, so she'd either turned her doll in first thing, or Caleb was still busy reprogramming it.  
"Actually, I came to say hi and to give you a celebratory coffee." Emily handed over one of the Styrofoam cups she was carrying. "Here's to being child free!"  
"It's kind of said, I was just starting to get attached." Paige sulked as she glanced down at the baby carrier. "I think I'm going to miss the baby too..."

"Very funny, McCullers." Emily rolled her eyes and moved to open the door for her.  
"Admit it, Princess. You're going to miss me." Paige teased, enjoying the slight flush to the other girl's cheeks as she shook her head.  
"I'm not quite rid of you yet." Emily pointed out, though her words lacked the kind of harshness that they would have held a couple of weeks earlier. "I was actually going to ask if I could maybe start training with you a couple of mornings a week?" Emily had been thinking about asking for a few days, but she hadn't been sure whether Paige would go for it. Like most swimmers, she was set in her ways when it came to her training routine.  
"Sure. That'd be awesome."

"Hi girls. Are you ready to turn PJ in?" Ella Montgomery greeted them from behind her desk. Most of the other dolls seemed to already be back in their cases.  
"I guess; I wanted to run away to Mexico with her, but Em said no." Paige joked, trying to hide her disappointment that the project was over. At least with Emily wanting to start training with her, she had an excuse to still see her.  
"Well, maybe I could work it so you could keep her for the weekend?" Ella suggested.  
"No, thank you! I am _done _with babies." Emily caught hold of Paige's hand and started tugging her towards the door, ignoring the other girl's playful protests. "Thank you for letting us take the class Ms Montgomery."

She was still holding on to Paige's hand as she dragged her outside the classroom. She let it go pretty quickly as she caught sight of Hanna and Caleb. "Hey guys."  
"Hey." Paige nodded at the others and shoved her hands in to the pockets of her jeans. "I've got to go see Fulton. I'll catch up with you guys later." She put a hand on Emily's shoulder before leaving, the small action catching Hanna's attention.

"So, you and Paige managed to go two weeks without killing each other. You two look like regular buddies now...I mean, she's staying at your house, you're holding hands in the hallway-"  
"Stop!" Emily shot her a warning glare, knowing exactly where she was headed. She was seriously regretting telling Hanna about the other girl spending the night at her house. They'd managed to sneak Paige out without Emily's mom noticing, which had been no small task. "I'm the first to admit that Paige and I are getting along great now, but it's nothing like that... We're just friends."

"Hey Coach. You wanted to see me?" Paige knocked on the older woman's office door before stepping inside. She wasn't quite sure if she was in trouble or not. The last time they'd spoken, Fulton had been ordering her to go and see her guidance councillor for almost hitting a rival swimmer. Paige needed haven't worried though, the coach was smiling as she pulled her glasses off and set them aside on her desk.  
"McCullers, I just wanted to say well done on completing the extra credit class. I've definitely seen a marked improvement in your behaviours at practise these last two weeks; it was especially great you two staying the course when we offered you an early out-"

"Huh?" Paige frowned, she was with the older woman until she mentioned dropping out early. "I kind of thought we _had_ to finish, otherwise we'd be dropped from the team?"  
"Ms Montgomery and I decided the two of you had shown enough improvement after Monday's meet. She said she mentioned it to Emily, didn't Fields tell you?" Fulton frowned, second guessing just how well the girls were communicating.  
"Oh, yeah, of course...she mentioned it, we just decided to see it through to the end." Paige lied as smoothly as she could, hoping it would convince her coach. Fulton nodded, seemingly happy with her answer.

Paige hung around for a little longer, talking about upcoming meets and practises, but it was hard for her to focus on a word Fulton was saying; all she could think about was Emily 'forgetting' to tell her they could drop the class. She couldn't think of a single reason why the other girl wouldn't have brought it up. It wasn't like she was all that attached to the doll ; which just left the possibility that maybe she _wanted _to spend time with Paige.

Paige tried not to let herself get too carried away with the idea, but she couldn't deny it was an exciting possibility. The thought that Emily actually liked hanging around with her, enough to put up with the doll, left Paige feeling giddy as she made her way to class. She passed Emily's home room on the way and the other swimmer smiled as she spotted her going past. Paige grinned as she offered her a wave. She ducked her head when Hanna caught her and gave her a curious look. She knew she'd just been caught smiling at Emily like an idiot, but she was in too good of a mood to care. Paige was counting down the hours until their movie marathon; and she wasn't the only one. Emily was really looking forward to it too.

She felt like the day was just dragging by though. It seemed to take forever just for lunch to roll around. When the bell finally went, Emily ducked in to the bathroom to touch up her eye-liner. There were two girls in the locked stalls, and Emily walked right in on their conversation.

"So she said no? Since when does McCullers turn down a date?"  
"She said she was seeing someone and it was getting pretty serious."  
"I heard she's dating that other swimmer. Emily something?"

Emily faltered, almost stabbing herself in the eye with her liner as she realised the two girls were talking about her and Paige. She finished in a hurry and darted back out before the girls could emerge from the stalls. Her cheeks were still flushed as she made her way to the cafeteria. Most of the others had beaten her there, but Hanna had saved her a seat beside her. Emily looked around as she waited in line for her lunch, trying to spot a glimpse of Paige. She wasn't sitting with Hanna and the others and she wasn't at the table where the swim team sat either.

"Missing someone?" Hanna asked as Emily took her seat.  
"Have you seen Paige anywhere?" She hadn't said she was going to join them, but Paige had been sitting with them most days. Lunch was almost over by the time she finally did show up. She walked straight over to Emily and leant over her shoulder, wearing a disarming smile.

"Hey, Fields. Would you kill me if I said I couldn't make the marathon tonight?"  
"That depends. Did you get a better offer?" Emily challenged, thinking back to what she'd overheard in the bathroom earlier. She was trying to be irritated with the other girl for cancelling on her, but one of Paige's hand was resting on the small of her back, and the other was on her shoulder, making it next to impossible for Emily to do _anything. _  
"Kind of." Paige laughed. "I've just had lunch with my aunt, only I didn't realise it was a bribe until she asked me to babysit tonight. I'm really sorry."

"No problem. We can do something some other time." Emily knew how important the boys were to Paige. She couldn't blame her for ditching their plans to take care of them.  
"Actually, I was going to ask if you wanted to come over tonight? We could watch movies once the boys go to sleep? Please say yes, Josh has been bugging the hell out of me to get you over to play video games with him again." Paige was leaning in close as she shot Emily a pleading look; there was only one real answer that she could give.  
"Sure. Why not."  
"Great!" Paige grinned as she squeezed her shoulder. "Why don't you come on over around six? I'll order take out for dinner."

* * *

"Does this look okay?" Emily asked Hanna for her opinion as she fussed over her outfit in the mirror. She was wearing a loose fitting black vest over a white camisole and ripped capris jeans. She'd already changed twice since stepping out of the shower.  
"Paige will love it." Hanna smirked, without bothering to look up from the magazine she was reading on Emily's bed.  
"It's not a date!" Emily snapped for the third time that afternoon. The blonde was like a dog with a bone. She refused to listen when Emily kept insisting there was nothing going on between her and Paige.

Hanna was far from convinced; especially since Emily had softly curled her hair, and was busy doing her make-up in the vanity mirror. "Sure, Em. Whatever you say..." She rolled her eyes. "You know it's almost six, right?"  
"What?" Emily cursed as she checked her watch and found Hanna was right. With one last check in the mirror, she ran her hands through her hair and then grabbed her leather jacket. She ushered Hanna off of her bed and downstairs, not caring that she was still clutching the magazine she'd picked up from her desk.

"Are you girls leaving?" Pam was hovering by the door as the teenagers came down the stairs. She knew full well where Emily was headed.  
"Em doesn't want to be late for her non-date with Paige." Hanna teased, deliberately riling her best friend.  
"Hanna, out!" Emily shepherded the blonde towards the door, trying to get her out of the house before she could open her mouth again. She pressed a quick kiss to her mom's cheek on the way out. "Bye Mom. I've got my keys in case I'm back late. Love you."

Emily had to drop Hanna off at home on the way over to Paige's house. She all but kicked the blonde out of her car when she started teasing her about not putting out on the first date. Emily was pretty sure her cheeks were still flushed by the time she pulled on to Paige's drive. Her dad was away for the weekend, so his car wasn't blocking the drive. Emily fluffed her hair one more time in the rear-view mirror, before climbing out of the car. She climbed the steps to the porch and knocked on the door, feeling uneasy as she waited for Paige to answer.

"Emily!" A pint-sized bundle of energy launched itself at her as the door opened and Paige's oldest cousin jumped out. He wrapped his arms tightly around the tops of Emily's legs, as Paige watched on in amusement. She was standing just inside the hall, holding the baby in her arms. Her hair was hanging loose for a change, and it was longer than Emily had realised; Nathan was happily tangling his little fists in to it.

"Hey Josh." Emily gave the little boy a hug back. "Hi." She greeted Paige with a smile as she stepped inside the house and closed the door behind her. Some of the unease Emily had been feeling on the way over quickly subsided as Josh dragged her in to the living room to play video games.

Paige's old Playstation console was set up to the big flat-screen television and it looked like they were in the middle of a game of _Crash Bandicoot. _Josh picked the controller back up as he sat down on the floor and carried on with his game. Emily took a seat on the couch, and was joined by Paige and the baby. "Thanks again for doing this. I'm sorry about the movie marathon, but I've got a ton of DVDs we can watch once the boys are asleep." Paige tried to apologise again. She felt guilty for dragging Emily along to help her babysit on a Friday afternoon, but she was really glad the other girl had agreed to come over.

"It's fine. I promised this little guy another game anyway." Emily leant forward to ruffle Josh's shaggy hair. It was the same dark auburn colour as Paige's.  
"He hasn't stopped asking about you all week. I think you made quite the impression." Paige teased. "Here, you can work your magic on this one while I go order the pizza." She handed the baby over while she went to go call the pizza place.

It took a while for the delivery guy to show up, so Paige was able to put her youngest cousin down to sleep before the pizza arrived. The doorbell went just as she was closing the door to the guest room. Emily had answered it, so the door was already open as Paige made her way downstairs. She frowned at the sight of some greasy haired college kid leaning against the door frame. He was trying, and failing, to flirt with the other swimmer.  
"You know I could probably give you those on the house, if you wanted?" He shot Emily a sleazy grin as his eyes raked over her body. Emily pointedly ignored him as she tried to hand over the cash Paige had left with her. "You're a real pretty girl-"

Paige felt her blood boiling as she stormed down the stairs. She slipped and arm around Emily's waist, pressing herself right up against her as she took the cash and thrust it towards the delivery guy. "She's also taken; so move it along, stud." She shot him a smile that was anything but friendly, as her hand settled possessively on the top of Emily's thigh. She took a sharp breath, trying not to pull away while the pizza guy was still watching them. He shook his head, mumbling something under his breath as he walked back towards his beaten car.

"Thanks." Emily pulled away the second the door was closed, and let out a shaky breath. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and it had nothing to do with the kid who had just left. "That guy was a total creep."  
"He's lucky I didn't kick his ass." Paige grumbled as she took the pizza boxes from the other girl. She led her back in to the living room and forced a smile as she found Josh waiting for them.

The rest of the night passed without incident. After dinner, the three of them played games and watched cartoons together. Josh fought to stay awake as long as he could, but a little after nine he was starting to fall asleep with his head resting against Emily's shoulder. "Okay buddy. Time for bed." Paige got to her feet and scooped her cousin up to carry him upstairs.  
"I'm not tired! I want to stay with Emily!" Josh sulked, even as he was rubbing at his eyes and yawning.  
"How about Emily and I read you a story?" Paige suggested, trying to barter to get the little boy in to bed. He eagerly agreed and pulled out a well-worn book from his overnight bag.  
"But you have to do the voices!" He insisted, driving a hard bargain. It was clear to see which side of the family he got his stubbornness from.

"Fine." Paige lay down on the edge of the bed with him, leaving Emily to perch on the end. Paige glanced warily over at the other girl as she started to read. True to her word, she put on a different voice for each character in the book, leaving her young cousin grinning, and Emily stifling back laughter. It didn't take long for Josh to fall asleep.

The two girls slipped quietly from the room. Emily expected to go back downstairs, but Paige caught hold of her arm at the top of them. "We should probably watch the movies in my room."  
"Why?" Emily's voice came out choked as she shifted nervously. Things had been fine with Josh around, but Emily was starting to feel awkward now that they were alone again. Hanna was partly to blame for going on about it being a date; but Paige's response to the sleazy pizza guy hadn't exactly helped. Emily was having trouble forgetting about the other girl's body pressing firmly against her own, not to mention her hand settling on her hip.

"I can shut the door over in case Josh gets back up. I don't really want him wandering downstairs and seeing blood and guts all over the screen." Paige's reasoning made perfect sense, so Emily could hardly argue with it. Before long, they'd settled down in Paige's room to watch the movies she'd picked out for them. The two girls were lying stretched out on her bed, and it seemed to Emily that their limbs kept brushing against each other every time one of them moved in the slightest; it was distracting to say the least.

"Are you okay?" Paige asked halfway through the second film, noticing how preoccupied the other girl seemed. Emily had been pretty quiet since the lights had gone off.  
"Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm fine." Emily lied. "I just can't believe you're making me watch _Child's Play II. _There's no way I'm going to sleep tonight!"  
"Like the other night? You slept just fine _then_." Paige pointed out that Emily had slept okay after watching the first one; even with PJ still in the house. "You were even snoring-"  
"I was not!" Emily objected. She playfully knocked her shoulder in to Paige's as she tried to defend herself. "I don't snore!"

"Okaaaaay..." Paige laughed and held her hands up in front of her in mock surrender. "Whatever you say, Princess..."  
"I don't!" Emily huffed again. Her lower lip was sticking out in an adorable pout, and it took everything Paige had not to lean in and try to kiss her. She dropped her head back to the pillow in front of her as she buried her hands under it ,and resisted the urge to reach out for Emily.

At some point, Paige fell asleep. She awoke ours later, with the television screen still flickering from across the other side of the room, and something warm and firm pressed up against her back. She craned her neck and caught sight of a mass of dark curls. Emily was fast asleep beside her. It looked like they had both fallen asleep watching the last movie.  
Paige rolled over slowly so that she was facing the other girl. She looked far too peaceful to disturb, and Paige didn't want to wake her; though her motives were quite selfish. She wanted Emily to spend the night.

She wanted to go back to sleep, with Emily still curled up next to her; so that's what she did. Paige pulled the comforter over the two of them and moved in a little closer before settling back down. She waited a beat, and when Emily didn't stir, she carefully draped an arm over the other girl's stomach; it didn't take very long for her to fall back to sleep.

* * *

**A/N: As ever, thanks for reading and for the awesome feedback! I'm making the most of my week off work by trying to write as much as I can, so I might get another update up before next week. **


	12. Chapter 12

Emily Fields lay perfectly still as she stared down at the arm draped across her stomach. She'd been awake for a few minutes, but she'd made no attempt to climb out of bed. It had taken her a moment to remember where she actually was. At first, when she'd woken up with the other girl pressed firmly against her back, and an arm wrapped protectively over her side, she'd thought for a second that it was Maya; and just for a second she had remembered all of the good times from their relationship.

It hadn't been all bad between them, but the way it had ended seemed to have overshadowed all of the good things. Emily had almost been stunned to open her eyes and find herself looking down at the pale skin of Paige's arm. It was Paige who was curled up behind her, the heat of her body warming Emily through like an old familiar blanket; and Emily still hadn't moved.

She wasn't sure how she felt about waking up in bed beside the other girl for the second time in the space of the week. She didn't know who had fallen asleep first, or when Paige had pulled the comforter over her. All Emily knew was that it was early morning and she was more content than she remembered being in a long time. She lay with her head under her arm, just looking at the hand that was placed on her stomach.

She'd never expected to feel so at ease with the other girl. Paige had been nothing but a headache to her for the better part of a year, yet she'd seen a whole different side to her in the two weeks they had been forced to act as parents together. Emily wasn't sure what it was she was feeling as she lay with Paige's arm over her stomach, and their legs entangled together; it felt a lot like safety. Even when she was sleeping, Paige was being thoughtful enough to avoid the spot where Emily's ribs were badly bruised.

"Paige! Paige!" Emily snapped her eyes shut as she heard the sound of Josh shouting his cousin's name. The little boy came running in to the room like a tornado before jumping on to the bed, almost landing on Paige's head. The other teenager made a disgruntled noise of protest as she buried her head further in to her pillow. Emily used the distraction to roll on to her back and stretch, pretending to have just woken up.

She used the arm that had been lying over Emily to swat absently at her over excited cousin, trying to stop him from jumping up and down on her. "Wake up, Paige! It's breakfast time. I want pancakes!"  
"Still night time." Paige grumbled, making no attempt to even open her eyes. "Go back to bed, Josh."

"I think he's right." Emily chuckled at the usually energetic swimmer. Paige had always struck her as a morning person, yet she seemed to be struggling to pull herself around.  
"Lies. All lies." She frowned, pulling the covers up over her head. Emily caught her winking before she disappeared under the covers.  
"It's not! It's morning! Wake up, Paige!" Josh pulled at the covers, impatiently trying to get his cousin up and out of bed. Emily realised the game Paige was playing just before she burst out from under the covers and tossed the little boy over her shoulders, mercilessly tickling him.

"Do me a favour buddy, go make your bed and I'll be up in a minute, okay?" Paige gave her oldest cousin a high five after she'd set him down on the floor. He nodded enthusiastically before running back out the room, calling out a greeting to Emily over his shoulder. Paige shook her head as she flopped back down on to her pillow. It seemed her tiredness wasn't all just part of the act.  
"I thought you were up at the crack of dawn every Saturday?" Emily teased, pointing out that Paige had usually done a five mile run by the time Emily was just dragging herself to work.

"Not every Saturday. Once a month I let myself sleep in; that's if Josh will let me." Emily was a little surprised by the revelation. She had thought Paige stuck religiously to her Saturday morning breakfasts at the Brew. Emily herself only worked three out of four Saturdays a month, but Paige always seemed to be there when she was. It seemed their Saturdays 'off' coincided. "I figure I can lie here for another ten minutes before he comes back in demanding those pancakes. What do you say, Fields, want to be my sous chef?" Paige gave the other girl a sleepy grin as she rolled on to her side to face her, mirroring Emily's own pose.

"Oh no, this is my one and only Saturday off this month. _You _can do all the cooking." Emily argued, biting back a smile as Paige let out an exaggerated sigh. "In fact, I might just stay right here until my pancakes are done. You can even bring them up, if you want?" Emily struggled to try and keep a serious face as she tried to see how far she could push it.  
"Really?" Paige pushed herself up in to a sitting position, giving her an edge over the other girl. "I don't see that happening any time soon. So, you can get up by choice, _or _I can make you get up." There was a glint of mischief in Paige's eye as she made the threat. Emily pulled the covers tighter around herself before making a show of settling back down on the pillows again.  
"I think I'll stay where I am, thanks."

"Don't say I didn't give you a choice..." Paige sighed, looking far too pleased with the decision that Emily had made. Without warning, she pounced on the other girl, pulling the covers back as she started tickling her the same way she had her cousin. Emily was giggling uncontrollably as she tried to fight her off. Paige had the advantage from being up on her knees. She was able to grab Emily's hands and push them up over her head, stopping her from trying to push her off her. Of course this meant that Paige's hands were no longer free to carry on tickling her, but that was the last thing on her mind as Paige hovered inches above the other girl.

Emily's chest was rising and falling rapidly as both girls froze, realising the position they had found themselves in. It wouldn't take much more than a dip of her head for Paige to bring their lips together; she wasn't even sure that Emily would try to stop her.

"Paige! I want pancakes!"  
"Coming, buddy!" Paige scrambled off the other girl, feeling her cheeks burning up as she made a dash for the door. Emily lay where she was; trying to catch her breath and wondering what the hell had just happened.

She brushed her hair back with her fingers as she climbed out of Paige's bed. She was still wearing her clothes from the day before, having fallen asleep in them. Crossing over to the set of drawers in the corner of the room, she helped herself to a pair of Paige's sweatpants, swapping them with her jeans. It was still early, but she sent her mom a quick text, letting her know she had spent the night. The last thing she needed was for her mom to be on her case for not calling her.

By the time she finally made her way downstairs the kitchen was a mess. There was flour covering most of the surfaces and a mass of dishes sitting in the sink. The baby was sitting in a high chair by the counter closest to where Paige was working. He gave Emily a happy gurgle as he spotted her. Josh was sitting on the counter, helping to stir a bowl full of what Emily hoped was pancake mix. "Oh, did Sleeping Beauty finally drag herself out of bed to join us?" Paige teased as she looked up and spotted her walking in.

"Room service was taking too long." Emily joked as she sat down at the breakfast bar. She popped one of the blueberries Paige was using for the pancakes in to her mouth.  
"I'll be sure to sack the bus-boy." Paige smirked, glad the earlier awkwardness seemed to have disappeared completely.  
"Am I the bus-boy?" Josh looked up with a frown.  
"You're the chef, buddy. Come on and help me add these blueberries, before Emily eats them all."

It didn't take long for them to stack up a pile of pancakes. They were soft and fluffy, with a tart sweetness that came from the berries. Emily was pretty impressed with them. She hadn't known Paige could cook; though she figured there were probably plenty of things she didn't know about her. Emily watched the other girl out of the corner of her eye as Paige moved around the kitchen, tidying up the mess that had been left behind from breakfast. She spotted a patch of flour on the back of Paige's shorts, but she kept it to herself. She wasn't about to admit to noticing it; especially not after what had almost happened upstairs.

For a second it had seemed like Paige was about to kiss her. Emily could feel her stomach twisting in knots just thinking about it. There was no denying that Paige McCullers was an attractive girl, anyone with eyes could see that, but Emily had never expected to be attracted _to _her. She wasn't sure what she would have done had Paige actually kissed her, but it was all she could think about as she picked at her breakfast.

"Everything okay?" Paige quizzed, noticing the other girl had zoned out a little bit.

"Fine." Emily's head snapped up from the table. She forced a smile, hoping to convince Paige that she was telling the truth. "I think I'll take off after breakfast, if you don't mind?"  
"No problem." Paige shrugged. She was about to ask if Emily was still up for Shana's party, when Sara let herself in through the front door. Emily seized the distraction to finish eating and washed up her plate as Paige's aunt fussed over her sons.

"Hi Emily, are you on your way out?" Sara noticed her pulling on her jacket, which had been draped across one of the chairs at the kitchen table.  
"Yeah, I've got a lot of homework to catch up on before tonight; Paige, I'm picking Hanna up for the party tonight, we figured we'd carpool and save on gas. Do you want to ride with us too?"  
"Whose party?" Sarah asked, helping herself to one of the partially eaten pancakes on her oldest son's plate.

"Sure. I'll come by your place for about seven. It's Shana's. She swims for the Red Devils." Paige answered the other two girls at the same time.  
"Shana, huh? I've heard that name before. Is it something serious?" Sara teased, making her niece squirm.  
"No. It's not-"

"Seven sounds great." Emily interrupted, heading towards the door. "I've really got to run though. It was nice seeing you again Sara. By Josh." She ruffled the little boy's hair on the way out as she showed herself to do the door. She was almost home free, until Paige followed after her to the door.

"Are you sure everything's okay Em?" Paige asked, fearing that she'd spooked the other girl with what had almost happened upstairs. Emily looked like she was about to jump out of her skin as Paige hovered anxiously by her.  
"Everything's fine." Emily insisted, trying to keep her eyes from wandering down to Paige's lips. She wasn't about to tell the biggest player in town that she just might have fallen for her a little bit. "I'll see you at seven."

Paige closed the door behind her and trudged back in to the kitchen, more convinced than ever that something was wrong with the other girl. "So what about that?" Sara's raised her brow with interest as she nodded in the direction that Emily had just left. "Is that serious?"

"It's complicated." Paige muttered bitterly. She had been starting to let her hopes build up, lavishing in the attention that Emily was showing her just a bit too much. She'd actually started to let herself think that something could happen between them; but Emily's stony reaction to the almost kiss had brought her crashing back down to earth with a bump. Paige was going to have to be a lot more careful around her.

* * *

"When did you take up martial arts?" Hanna asked, seemingly out of nowhere as she sat down on Emily's bed. Pam had let her in, since Emily was busy raiding her closet for something to wear.  
"Huh?" Emily frowned. She looked around her room for some kind of clue, but nothing jumped out at her. "Hanna, what are you even talking about?"  
"Your sweats. Rosewood Martial Arts Club." Hanna tugged on her pants leg.  
"Oh." Emily looked down at her borrowed grey sweat pants. She hadn't noticed the white writing down the side  
of them. "They're not mine. I borrowed them from Paige this morning."

"You stayed over? Wow, must have been some date." Hanna joked, trying to rile her friend. She waited for Emily to bite, but the other girl was suspiciously silent. "Em?"  
"What?" She snapped, emerging from her closet with two plaid shirts in her hand. "Which one do you think looks better on me, the red or the blue?"  
"I dunno, why don't I call Paige and ask?" Hanna suggested with a smirk.  
"Not helping." Emily rolled her eyes and tossed the blue shirt at the blonde. She pulled the red one on over the white vest top that she was already wearing. She just had to find something to replace Paige's sweats. "I told you, it's not like that...do you think I should wear my hair up or down?"

By the time Paige finally showed up, Emily had managed to pull on some skin tight black jeans, as well as curl her hair. "Looking good, McCullers!" Hanna wolf whistled as the other girl walked in to the bedroom. Emily turned around, expecting to see her standing in one of her usual shirts; she was completely taken aback when she found Paige standing by her door in a dress. It was a deep purple, with a plunging neck line and thin spaghetti straps. She was wearing matching heels, which gave her an extra inch of height over Emily.

"Wow. You look...different." Emily caught herself before she could say anything else.  
"Thanks, I think." Paige grinned. "You look...nice."  
"Thanks." Emily tugged at the bottom of her shirt, suddenly wondering whether she should have gone with the blue one. "We're leaving in five minutes. I just need to change this shirt."  
"Why? It looks greats on you." Paige sounded sincere as she checked her watch. "Come on guys, hustle up! We're going to be late."  
"Someone's eager." Hanna pointed out, voicing Emily's thoughts exactly. Paige was pretty dressed up for the impending party, and she seemed to be in a hurry to get there; maybe things with Shana were more serious than she was letting on.

"Okay, I'm ready." Emily grabbed her purse and her car keys, sparing Paige any more of Hanna's teasing.  
"Shotgun!" The blonde announced on the way down the stairs, beating Paige to the punch. She ended up sitting behind Emily in the back seat, absently watching the road go by. Emily, for her part, was having trouble keeping her eyes on the road. She kept looking up at the rear-view mirror, sneaking glances at the other girl when she thought she could get away with it.

Shana lived over in York County, in an impressive old ranch house. Her parents were away for the weekend, so she'd invited a _few_ people over. The house was packed to the rafters with teenagers, and even a few college kids. Paige recognised a few of the swimmers who were sitting out on the porch as they climbed up the steps. She asked them were Shana was and they directed her to the kitchen. With Hanna and Emily following close behind her, she ventured inside the crowded house, seeking out their host.

"McCullers!" Shana spotted her the second she walked in to the room. Jumping down from where she was perched on one of the counters, she made her way straight over to the rival swimmer. She pulled her in for a hug and kissed her cheek. "Looking good, babe." Emily stood awkwardly beside the two embracing girls, trying not to look as out of place as she felt. Hanna had wandered off to find something to drink, leaving Emily standing alone and feeling like a lemon.

"Hey, Fields." Shana moved on to Emily, giving her a hug that lingered for a little too long. "I'm glad you made it. Want a drink?" She reached for a plastic cup full of warm beer, but Emily declined the offer.  
"No, thanks. I'm driving."  
"Well, if you won't have a drink with me, then you've got to promise me a game of pool. Come find me later, okay?" Shana shot her a wink before handing the plastic cup over to Paige instead. She left the two Sharks alone while she went to see to her other guests.

Paige waited until she was out of sight before setting the cup aside and exchanging it for a sealed bottle of water. She got one for Emily too. "You're not drinking?"  
"It's not really my scene." Paige shrugged. It wasn't that she _didn't_ drink, she just wanted to make sure she stayed in full control of all of her faculties . "You can drink if you want to. I could drive us home?"

"I'm good." Emily took one of the bottles of water from her with a genuine smile. "Hanna will probably drink enough for the three of us anyway. Speaking of Hanna, I should maybe go find her; I'll catch up with you and Shana in a bit?" Emily didn't want to cramp the other girl's style. She was planning on making herself scarce for the rest of the party.  
"Sure." Paige tried to hide her disappointment at the brush off. "I'll just go find Shana. Catch you soon."

She slipped out of the crowded kitchen, leaving Emily to try and spot Hanna on her own. She caught the blonde out in the hall, coming back from the beer keg that was sitting in the back yard. She was rushing towards Emily, moving as fast as the crowd of people between them would allow. Her eyes were wide with alarm as she finally reached her. "I need to tell you something-"

"Em?" Emily felt a hand on her arm. Even before she turned around, she knew what had gotten Hanna so worked up. Swallowing hard, she turned to face the girl who had just approached her; wondering what the hell she was doing there.  
"Maya..."


	13. Chapter 13

"Maya...what are you doing here?" Emily couldn't believe her eyes. Her ex girlfriend was standing right in front of her, as large as life. Maya had been the last person she expected to run in to at a party in the middle of York County.  
"I'm here with some friends, they know the girl whose house it is." Maya shrugged, oblivious to just how awkward Emily was feeling. She'd already had more than enough on her plate dealing with her new-found interest in Paige; as well as Paige's _interest_ in Shana and the bubbling jealousy in the pit of her stomach. Emily really didn't need her ex thrown in to the mix. To top things off, Hanna had disappeared again. Leaving Emily to fend for herself as Maya leant in close, trying to be heard over the music. "You look good...I always liked that shirt on you."

She emphasised her point by running her hand down the front of it. Emily's eyes closed involuntarily. It was next to impossible to stop her body from automatically responding to the person who had once made it feel so good. "I should go find Hanna." Emily let out a shaky breath. She hated that Maya could still have that effect on her, even after months of being separated.  
"You're not even going to have a drink with me?" Maya asked, making it sound like Emily owed her that kind of civility; like Emily had been the one to ruin things between them.  
"I-"

"Hey, babe. Shana's asking for that game of pool now." Paige appeared out of nowhere, like a knight in shining armour as she came up beside the other swimmer and put a hand to her back. She was standing close. _Really _close. There was no denying her intention was to piss Maya off. The other girl's eyes narrowed as Paige dipped her head, leaning in close to press her lips to Emily's ear; and for a second, the other girl forgot how to breathe. With one of Paige's hands resting on the small of her back, and her mouth so close, Emily was struggling to focus on the words she was whispering to her.

"Hanna sent me on a rescue mission. Follow my lead." Her hand moved from its spot on Emily's back and took hold of her hand instead. Her grip was soft, yet firm. Her thumb brushed gently over the back of Emily's hand, reassuring her that she was going to get her out of the awkwardness with her ex. There was a lump the size of a golf ball in Emily's throat, as she bit back the whimper that was threatening to escape from it. Paige turned to Maya with a dazzling smile, unconcerned by the way Emily's ex was glaring daggers at her. "Maya, you don't mind if I steal her, do you? Thanks." With a wink, she turned and started leading Emily through the crowd.

She positioned Emily in front of her and kept hold of her hand, not wanting to lose her among the sea of bodies littering the house. There wasn't much room between them as Paige kept herself right at Emily's back, guiding her out towards the back yard, where Shana and a group of Red Devils were playing pool. Hanna was with them. Emily let go of Paige's hand and slipped over to give her friend a grateful hug, for sending Paige to intervene with Maya's attempt to talk to her.

"Everything good?" Hanna asked, her expression serious as she looked back at Paige for confirmation. In Emily's opinion, things were far from good. She watched as her new found friend took the pool cue that Shana had offered her and leant over the table to take her shot. It was next to impossible for Emily to take her eyes off of Paige's long, lean legs. She'd seen them before of course. Swimming with the other girl, and changing in front of her on an almost daily basis, meant that Emily was fairly well acquainted with the other girl's body; but it was a completely different thing to see her in a dress and heels.

"Hey, Fields. We've got next game, okay?" Shana informed her. She seemed to be trying to make a genuine effort to include Paige's friends; or at lest Emily.  
"Sure." Emily smiled meekly. She didn't really feel up to playing. Between Maya and Paige, it already felt like she was playing more than enough games in her life. Hanna sensed her discomfort and offered up whatever it was that she was drinking from a plastic cup. Emily took it gratefully, deciding to take Paige up on her offer to drive them home. She needed something to take the edge off what was probably going to be the most awkward night of her life.

Her first drink burned her throat as it went down, but by the time Shana pressed a second cup in to her hand she was growing accustomed to the sharp taste of bourbon. "You're up, Fields." Paige handed her the pool cue she'd been holding. Their fingers brushed together, and Emily almost dropped the wooden stick. She mumbled 'Thanks' as she took hold of it and stepped hastily back. Paige gave her a curious look, but said nothing more about it.

"You can break." Shana announced, once she'd racked up the balls down the other end of the table.  
"I'm not very good at this..." The only kind of 'pool' that Emily was good with was the type with water. Spencer had tried to teach her how to play a few times, but she'd been talking about angles and the curvature of the cue ball, so most of it had gone over Emily's head.

Lining up her aim, she pulled the cue back and took her shot. The white ball rolled harmlessly to the other side of the table, missing the other balls altogether and bouncing off the buffer at the other end. Emily was painfully aware of the crowd of people hanging around the table as she bashfully ducked her head and brushed her hair back from her face. "Told you."  
"You just need a little help." Shana laughed, though there was no malice to it. She moved up to the top of the table, like a shark seeking out blood, and slipped behind Emily. She placed her hands over the other girl's on the cue, and leant forward a little, forcing Emily's body to do the same. "And a good teacher."

Paige watched from the sidelines, unsure of what kind of game Shana was playing. Their 'date' the other night hadn't exactly ended on a high note, but they'd agreed to just stick to being friends. Shana had been her usual flirtatious self when Paige had first shown up, but it looked like her attention was moving on to Emily; despite knowing just how Paige felt about her. She wasn't the only one watching Shana _helping_ Emily to play. Across the yard, Maya was stood with her friends, watching closely as their host pressed herself up against Emily a little too much; or left her hand in place over Emily's for a beat longer than was needed as she helped her line up her shot.

Paige had had enough by the time the other two girls were down to the black ball. She excused herself from the group standing around the table and headed back inside to grab another bottle of water. She had just unscrewed the top and was taking a long drink, when she heard a voice behind her. "It's McCullers, right?" She turned to find Maya standing behind her. She was leaning casually against the frame of the back door, having followed Paige back inside. The kitchen was quieter than it had been earlier. With most people out in the yard, but there were still a few bodies littered around the place. Enough to intervene if a fight broke out, anyway.

"Right." She didn't offer anymore than that as she tried to push past Maya and back outside. They were about the same height, but Paige knew her athletic build would make the different if things escalated to violence. Her temper was running short as it was, watching Shana fawn all over Emily, and the other girl lapping it right up. It wouldn't take much to set her off, and Maya appeared to be determined to start something.  
"You should keep your girl a little closer. That Shana chick seems pretty interested." She warned, with a comment clearly intended to push Paige's button. The swimmer forced an easy going smile as she shrugged; ready to push right back.

"Emily and I aren't together. We're just having a little fun; god knows she needs it...besides, that whole jealous insecurity thing? I think the people who get that the most are cheaters themselves, so..." She shrugged again, acting like it didn't bother her in the slightest that someone else was all over Emily.

She knocked in to Maya with a little more force as she made her way back outside, her water bottle gripped tightly in her hand. She knew Maya was glaring at her, and that she'd probably just put a target on her back, but she didn't care. It would help to keep Maya's attention away from Emily. Walking over to the pool table, which was under a canopy coming off the back of the house, she noticed something else that gave her cause for concern. The blonde who had attacked Emily at the last meet was hanging nearby with a large group of girls. She was definitely watching Emily, and it wasn't in an appreciative way.

"Damn it." Paige cursed under her breath. Shana hadn't mentioned the girl would be there; though Paige supposed the party was so large that it was possible the blonde had tagged along with her friends, without Shana noticing her presence. Paige made sure to stand right by Emily when she got back over to the table. She blocked the blonde's view, and sent her a scathing glare, making it obvious she should keep her distance.

There was just no helping some people though. As soon as Emily headed in to the kitchen for a refill, the blonde and a couple of her friends followed. Paige had promised both Emily and Shana that she wouldn't hit the other girl, but that had been on the understanding that she left Emily alone. Paige had every right to defend her friend if the crazy bitch was planning anything. She waited a minute, giving the group just long enough to reach Emily, but not enough time to have done anything. Sure enough, as Paige walked through the kitchen door, she found Emily backed up against one of the counters, with the blonde and her two friends surrounding her.

"Looks like your little pet bull dog was stupid enough to let you go off alone-"  
"Not stupid; just calculated." The blonde jumped as Paige growled from right behind her. She quickly spun around, turning her back on Emily. It was clear where the real danger was coming from. The rival swimmer was quaking, until her friends stepped in closer to her, a reminder that they had Paige outnumbered. A smug smile crept over her face as the blonde crossed her arms and tried to stare Paige down.  
"I'm going to stick with stupid. You and your girlfriend got me kicked off my team, so now you're going to pay for it."

"Paige-" Emily tried to step forward, but the other three girls were blocking her path. For all they weren't paying attention to her anymore, they weren't about to let her just walk away. Paige felt her fists clenching at her sides as an eerie calmness fell over the rest of her body. She knew it was just the fabled calm before the storm. Within seconds, a rush of adrenaline would course through her body, forcing her to face her fight or flight response to danger. For Paige, there was only one choice.

"Here's how it's going to be." She was looking past the blonde, at her two friends gathered behind her. "I'm kicking her ass tonight, whether I've got to go through you two first or not." Her voice was a low growl as she threatened the two girls, making it quite clear that nothing short of killing her was going to stop her from reaching the blonde. Apparently their loyalty didn't run that deep. With a nervous shuffle they fled for the door, leaving their friend to fight her own battles. Paige cracked her knuckles as she took a step forward, wanting to scare the blonde as much as she could; to make her pay for what she'd put Emily through.

"Paige, stop!" Emily reached her before she could get any closer. Putting a hand on her chest she looked her square in the eye as she tried to push her back a little, towards the way she'd just came in. "She's not worth it..."  
"_You _are." Paige countered, taking Emily by complete surprise. She faltered, unsure of what to say in response. She let her hand drop down to Paige's, taking it in her own.  
"Please, Paige. I'm asking you not to do this."

Paige was already pumped up and ready for a fight. Her adrenaline was coursing and her heart was racing. Emily could feel her pulse as she clung tightly to her hand. It was beating in time to the heavy dance music pumping out from the speakers in the living room. It gave Emily an idea. "Let's go dance, okay?" She tugged on Paige's hand, trying to lead her out to the living room. She just needed to work off some steam, one way or another. Emily would prefer it to be in a way that didn't involve anyone calling the cops.

Paige relented and allowed the other girl to lead her towards the source of the music. She stopped right in front of the blonde though, making sure to get right up in her face. "You have no idea how fucking lucky you are that she's is _better_ than you. Anyone else would have let me kick your ass...just watch your back Blondie-"  
"Paige"! Emily snapped impatiently, tugging on her hand again to pull her away.

The living room was jam packed and lit only by some strobe lights up by where the DJ had set his kit up. Paige wasn't sure what the party was for, but Shana seemed to have gone all out for it. The room was stiflingly hot, even with Paige only wearing a thin dress. The music was loud, something fast and pounding that had the walls vibrating. Emily started to move, dancing while refusing to let go of Paige's hand. She was probably afraid that Paige would go back for the blonde if she left go.

She needn't have worried though. Paige's attention was squarely on her as they danced among the sea of people around them. Emily was like an island, a safe haven where Paige could go to calm herself down. She could feel the anger slowly subsiding as something more positive replaced it. She used their joined hands to spin Emily, pulling her back against her with a laugh as Emily playfully rolled her eyes at her.

At some point, the music changed to something a little slower and a lot more edgy. Suddenly, Emily was pressed up against her, her body grinding as her hands found her hair. Something primal stirred deep within Paige at the sight. Her hands found the other girl's hips as she pulled her in even closer. It took Emily by surprise for a second, but then she was turning and her hand was on Paige's shoulder as they moved against each other, each girl seeing just how far they could push it. Emily's other hand was still at the back of her head as she moved it back and forth, whipping her long hair around.

Paige wasn't sure the other girl's plan to calm her down was working. If anything, she was just getting more worked up; though in an entirely different way. She was breathing hard with effort of just trying to control herself. Emily went to move away again, but Paige wrapped both arms around her front, keeping her back pinned against her. She moved her head so that her face was right by Emily's hair, her nose pressing against the side of her neck. She let out a shuddering sigh, no longer sure if the world around her was real. Emily's hands moved to take hold of Paige's wrists; but instead of pushing her away, as Paige had expected, Emily just made sure she was holding her all the more tighter. Her neck craned, ever so slightly to the left, and Paige found her mouth brushing against the soft skin there. Her lips were trembling as she moved them in a more deliberate manner, planting another kiss against Emily's collar.

Emily twisted in their arms, bringing their faces inches apart. Paige's heels gave her an extra couple of inches over her, so she had to reach up for her; tilting her head back as Paige leant down. Their lips had barely grazed when someone crashed in to the side of them, jerking Emily out of the daze she had been in. "Watch it!" Paige snapped at the poor drunk guy's, whose friend had just shoved him towards the girls. She still had one arm protectively wrapped around Emily, but she felt her slip away.

"I need the bathroom." Emily couldn't look her in the eye as she turned and started forcing her way through the crowd. Paige went to go after her, but the torn look on Emily's face had her rooted to the spot.  
"Stupid, stupid, stupid..." Paige shook her head, berating herself for doing something so unbelievably stupid as trying to kiss Emily Fields.

Upstairs, Emily was sat on the carpet in the hallway. She had her back to the wall and her head in her hands as she tried to process what had just happened. She had almost kissed Paige, _again; _and Paige had been about to let her. The other girl hadn't exactly been a passive part of what had happened. She was the one who had pulled Emily in close first, and she had been the one to let her mouth get so close to Emily's neck.

Of course she had! Emily scoffed to herself as she pinched the bridge of her nose with her fingers. She was _Paige McCullers! _She was the biggest player in town! Whether she had wanted to or not, she had dated half the girls in Rosewood; and she'd probably kissed a few of them too. "Stupid, stupid..." Emily shook her head, fighting back the hot angry tears there were threatening to spill down her cheeks. How could she have let herself get so attached to someone like Paige?

It didn't matter how nice or sweet she was, or how overprotective she could be of Emily; none of it mattered if she was playing some kind of angle. What if everything they'd shared had just been part of some elaborate game for the other girl? What if Paige was deliberately trying to make Emily fall for her, as part of some cruel joke? Emily felt her stomach tightening in knots. She didn't want to believe that it was true. She wanted the _real_ Paige to be the sweet and caring girl who had fussed over her all week; not the heartless jerk who had teased Emily for the better part of a year.

"Em, are you okay?" She looked up as the bathroom door opened, and Maya stepped out. Emily had used the excuse about going to the bathroom just to get away from Paige. To put some distance between them while she tried to figure things out.  
"I'm fine." It was a lie, but Emily had become a dab hand at hiding her feelings from weeks and months of crying over her ex. She had convinced her friends that she was over the other girl long before she had been. She wasn't even sure that she had been totally over Maya until Paige had helped her handover the box of stuff that had still littered Emily's room. Paige had kissed her cheek that day. The memory burned in Emily's mind and on her skin as her cheek tingled; she needed that to be _real._

"No, you're not." Maya shot her a disbelieving look as she sat down beside her. She puled her knees up to her chest as she rested her chin on them. "Talk to me, Em. I'm not some stranger."  
"That's exactly what you are, Maya. I don't _know_ you anymore." Emily sighed. She already had enough drama going on right now, without adding her ex's sulking to the mix. "You cheated on me...how could you even do that? How can you claim to love someone and then just go off with somebody else?"

"There was a lot going on." Maya tried to defend herself, but even she knew that what she'd done was unjustifiable. "It's not an excuse, but we were in a bad place for a long time, Emily. We just stopped working."  
"I missed you." Emily admitted in a quiet whisper. "Even before we broke up, you were already some place else."  
"I know, and I hate that I did that to you." Maya moved one of her hands so that it was sitting over Emily's knee. "I want us to still be friends, Em. I know we can never get back what we had, but I'd like it if we could try and be friends?"

"I'd like that too." Emily smiled, and they shared a brief hug. There was nothing in it, but when Emily looked back up she found Paige standing watching them from the top of the stairs. There was an indiscernible look on her face, but it was only there for a second. She was gone as quickly as she had appeared. "Damn it." Emily pushed herself back to her feet and chased after her. She caught hold of her arm at the bottom of the stairs, but Paige wrenched away.

Emily tried again, this time refusing to let go as she took Paige's hand and dragged her outside the front door. It was quieter, so they could actually talk. Paige wasn't in the talking kind of mood though. She'd gone after Emily to check on her, but she'd found her perfectly fine, and in the arms of her ex. She yanked her hand free from Emily's and wrapped her arms around herself. Her blood was boiling, and the one person who could usually be depended on to ground her anger, was the actually the cause of it. "You know, I figured you for a lot of things, Emily; but a doormat wasn't one of them."

"It's not like that! Emily protested. "We were just talking! Not that it''d be a_ny _of your business if we were getting back together."  
"Forgive me for looking out for you." Paige spat, her temper flaring. "But everyone at this party seems to want to either fight you, or fuck you!"  
"Oh my god, you're jealous! Aren't you?" The penny finally dropped for Emily as she watched Paige's expression change.

"I don't know what you're talking about." She ducked her head, unable to look the other girl in the eye. "If you're talking about what happened when we were dancing, then forget about it. I already have. It didn't mean anything." Paige huffed, confirming exactly what Emily had feared; but that wasn't what the other girl had been referring to.  
"You're jealous that Shana's been all over me all night." Emily challenged. "If you like her, just tell her, okay? She's not going to wait around forever for you to make your move!"

"Yeah, I'm starting to see that." Paige choked out. "Look, it might not be any of my business, but Maya's bad news. I don't want her hurting you again, Em-"  
"I'm not going to give her the chance! Amazing as it might sound, two people can break up and still be friends. You'd know that if you actually had relationships, instead of just conquests."

"Wow. Forgive me for caring." Paige shook her head. "I won't bother anymore." She shoved past Emily, heading back inside to find Shana. She needed some space to cool down. Less than ten minutes ago she had been a hair's breadth away from kissing Emily, but things had fallen apart so quickly; as they often did.  
"Where's Em?" Hanna questioned when Paige showed back up on her own. They'd been gone a while, but the blonde hadn't been too concerned about it.  
"How should I know? I'm not her keeper!" Paige grunted petulantly. "Why don't you go find Maya? She's probably with her."

It was hours later before Paige caught sight of either of the other two girls again. A little after midnight the three of them were ready to leave. Hanna and Emily had carried on drinking. The pair were giggling and unsteady on their feet as they approached Emily's car. Paige was already waiting for them, having text the others to meet her there. Emily sobered up once she spotted her by the car.

There was a heavy silence as the three girls climbed inside. Emily took the back seat, letting Hanna ride shotgun again. Even while drunk, the blonde wasn't oblivious. She knew something was up with the other two. Emily had refused to say what was wrong, but it was clear they'd been arguing over something. "Are you guys fighting again, or something?"  
"No." Paige and Emily answered at the same time, both sounding equally pissed off.  
"Great. Glad we cleared that up." Hanna rolled her eyes and switched on the radio, trying to ease the awkwardness.

"I'll drop you off at Emily's and walk home." Paige announced once they'd made it back to Rosewood.  
"We're staying at Hanna's." Emily finally piped up from the back seat.  
"No we're not. We're staying at your house." Hanna argued. "My mom's got people from the bank over."  
"I thought you said she was going out? We can't go back to my house. My mom will kill me if she finds out I've been drinking!"  
"McCullers?" Hanna grinned at the other girl. "Is your dad home?"

"Uh, no. He went to Scranton for the weekend." Paige knew where the blonde was going with her question. She glanced at Emily in the wing mirror, wondering if she would go for it. As mad as she was with her, she just couldn't stop looking out for her. "You're welcome to stay. Both of you." Emily reluctantly agreed. She knew going home to face her mom wasn't an option. A short while later and she found herself standing in Paige's room.

They'd agreed on the sleeping arrangements and Hanna was next door in the guest room. Paige had offered to take the couch, leaving Emily with her bed. They'd barely said a word on the way home, and that silence had extended back to the house too. Hanna had once again tried to ask what was going on between them, but Emily had been too tired to talk about it.

She slumped down on to Paige's bed and curled up with one of her pillows against her stomach. Paige's scent was all over it, from her shampoo to her perfume. Emily let out a heavy sigh, wondering how things had fallen apart so quickly. She and Paige had been getting on great for weeks. In fact, they'd been getting along _too _well. Emily wasn't sure when she had fallen for the other girl, but at some point she had.

"Sorry, I just need to grab something to change in to." Emily looked up, startled by Paige appearing at the door. She was looking down at her feet as she crossed over to the bed and pulled her nightclothes out from under her other pillow. She headed straight back out once she had them.  
"Paige...I'm sorry. You were only trying to look out for me, and I acted like an ass." Emily apologised as she set the pillow she'd been clutching aside. "You didn't deserve that...things were just kind of crazy tonight."  
"It's fine. I get it." Paige tried to shrug it off. She knew she'd crossed a line when she'd tried to kiss Emily. The other girl had been drinking, and she'd been upset from running in to Maya. Paige had selfishly taken advantage of that.

"You were right, actually. I've never had a real relationship. I've been with plenty of girls, but I've never had what you and Maya had... I don't know what it's like to bump in to an ex at a party and not know what to say to them; I don't know what's it's like to have their stuff all over my room..."  
"You could find out for yourself." Emily swallowed the lump in her throat as she felt a surge of courage. "Ask her out, Paige. Shana really likes you; and whoever this girl is who you're so hung up on, she's obviously not worth it. Not if she doesn't see how great you are."

"Thanks." Paige managed a weak smile. "But you're wrong... Goodnight Em."

"Paige?" Emily called out her name just after she walked out of the door. Taking a breath to steel herself, she walked back in to her own room; hoping that Emily wasn't about to try and push her for a name.  
"Yeah?"  
"You don't have to sleep downstairs." Emily's eyes were soft and glassy from the alcohol; a painful reminder to Paige that she wasn't herself. Whatever had happened between them at the party was down to the fact that Emily wasn't thinking clearly. She had a lot going on, and Paige wasn't about to add to that confusion.  
"Yeah, I do."


	14. Chapter 14

"I thought you were sleeping downstairs?" Emily frowned as Paige climbed in to the bed beside her. She wasn't sure how long she had been sleeping for, but it was still dark outside and she was surprisingly hangover free, suggesting she hadn't been asleep long enough to sober up any.  
"I changed my mind." Paige mumbled back, her gaze intense and fixed on the other girl.  
"W-what are you doing?" Emily stammered as Paige slowly pulled the covers back and moved to straddle her waist.

"I think you know what I'm doing, Princess." Paige answered before dipping her head to steal a searing kiss, leaving both girls a little breathless. Paige's confidence never wavered as she moved her mouth lower, kissing a path down the other girl's throat as her hands slid under her shirt. Her clipped nails raked lightly over Emily's sides, leaving a tingling sensation behind in their wake. She closed her eyes back over, relishing in the feeling of Paige's body pressed against the length of her.

"Paige!" Her eyes snapped open again as Paige's lips suddenly pulled away from her neck and found their way to the waistband of her shorts. Emily's shirt was bunched up above her stomach, and her fists were clenching at the sheets as Paige grazed her teeth ever so lightly across her hip bone.  
"Emily?" Paige shot back, her eyes alight with mischief as she lifted her head to stare up at her. She was wearing a sly grin, fully aware of the effect she was having on the girl lying in her bed.

Emily's heart was racing as she held her gaze, silently willing her to continue. She felt like she was about to die with anticipation, as Paige planted teasing kisses all the way across her stomach. The other girl stood her ground though, refusing to go any lower until Emily asked her to. She wanted to hear her say the words. "Please..." Emily whimpered, her self-control dissolving as she felt Paige nipping at the sensitive flesh just beneath the waistband of her shorts. "I want you...please. God, I want you so much-"

Emily's eyes snapped open at the shrill sound of her phone ringing beside her. It took her a flustered moment to realise she was alone in bed; with the sheets tangled around her and her heart beating wildly in her chest. Her phone was still going crazy on the night stand by Paige's bed. She ignored it as she sat up and pushed the covers away from her, feeling hot and bothered by the weight of them. She ran her hand through her hair, pushing it back from her face as she focused on calming herself down.

The phone beside her finally stopped ringing, but the silent reprieve only lasted for a moment when Paige's bedroom door burst open. "Jesus, Em. Try answering your phone!" Hanna rolled her eyes as she flopped down on to the bed beside her friend, not caring when she practically landed on top of her. Emily shuffled over, her body still feeling far too sensitive from the dream she'd just endured.

She picked up her phone and frowned at Hanna's name on her screen. "Why were you even calling me?" She huffed as she tossed the phone back down and pulled her knees up to her chest. Now that she was fully conscious, she could appreciate the pounding headache that too much bourbon the night before had left her with. Her lips felt dry and cracked, and she would have just about sold her soul for a glass of water to quench her thirst.

"I figured you and McCullers might have shacked up, and I didn't want to walk in on anything." Hanna teased, receiving a scowl from Emily for her trouble. "Seriously though, I can't find Paige. I woke up like twenty minutes ago and she's not in the house." Emily was more grateful than concerned by the news. She wasn't sure she could face their host without her cheeks turning scarlet. "Maybe she went out for breakfast? God, I _hope_ she has. I need some carbs, stat!"

"She probably went out running." Emily grumbled and lay back down. The room around her was spinning slightly, and it wasn't helping her headache in the slightest.  
"God, morning people are weird." Hanna announced with a shake of her head. She moved to lie next to her, curling up at her back and draping an arm over Emily's stomach. Emily swallowed hard, her mind going back to Saturday morning; when she'd awoke in the same bed, to Paige's arm wrapped protectively over her. She suddenly felt the need to get up. To get as far away from Paige, and her bed, as possible.

"Let's go get some breakfast. We can go to the Brew, my treat?" She suggested, hoping Hanna would agree without comment. Sadly, she had no such luck.  
"Are you kidding me, I'm wearing one of McCullers' hockey jerseys and my hair's a mess!" The blonde pointed out her dishevelled state, reminding Emily that she was still wearing the things Paige had borrowed her for bed the night before too. "There's no way I'm going out in public until I've taken a shower and I'm wearing my own clothes. Lets go see what Paige has got to eat."

Hanna got up out of bed and dragged Emily along with her. "Why can't we just go to my house and have breakfast?" Emily argued, reluctant to hang around any longer, in case Paige came back from wherever it was she'd taken off to.  
"We can't just_ leave, _Em! That would be rude. Besides, Paige looks like a _Pop Tarts_ kind of girl... Jackpot!" The blonde grinned as she opened one of the kitchen cupboards and found a variety of breakfast cereal. Some of them were obviously for Paige's younger cousins.

"Lucky Charms, or Captain Crunch?" Hanna held up the two boxes for Emily to chose from.  
"Neither. I'm not hungry." Emily sulked. She took a seat at the breakfast bar and laid her head down on the counter. It was aching from her hangover, and her mind was still racing from what she'd dreamt. She could feel her cheeks getting flustered just thinking about what she had imagined Paige doing to her. She just wanted to go home and crawl in to her bed for the rest of the weekend.

Hanna shrugged as she started filling a bowl with both types of cereal. "What was up with you and Paige last night, anyway?"  
"I don't know what you mean." Emily snapped defensively as she sat back up. Had Hanna seen them dancing? Or had she overheard them talking in Paige's room?  
"Em, please." The blonde rolled her eyes at her. "You two barely said a word to each other on the way home. Now she's nowhere to be seen, and you can't wait to leave! What happened? Did you guys have a fight or something?"

"It's nothing. We talked it over already." Emily shrugged off Hanna's concern. "I just really want to go home. I drank way too much and now my head feels like it's about to fall off." As she was talking, the back door opened and Paige slipped back inside the house. She was dressed in her running gear, with her hair tied back in a ponytail and a thin sheen of sweat covering her body. She'd been up practically at the crack of dawn to go running, hoping to be back in the house before the other girls surfaced.

She had her headphones in and and her head down as she quietly shut the back door over, not having spotted the other two girls. "Jesus!" Paige jumped as she turned and found them sitting at the breakfast bar. She yanked her headphones out. "I thought you'd still be sleeping!" It was aimed at Hanna, but Emily didn't miss the sideways glance that Paige sent her way. Maybe it was that she'd _hoped_ Emily would still be sleeping when she got back; or that she'd be gone. Emily ducked her head, trying not to think about all of the things that had and hadn't happened between them over the weekend.

"Hanna was hungry, and she decided to wake me up to tell me about it." Emily tried her best to sound normal as Paige moved further in to the kitchen, and sat the paper-bag she was carrying down on the counter.  
"That was nice of her." Paige grinned, trying just as hard to act like things were fine between them. "I guess I did right in getting these then." She pulled a box of pastries out of her paper bag and placed them down in front of Hanna.  
"Oh my god! McCullers, I could kiss you!" Hanna beamed giddily as she turned in her seat and threw her arms around the other girl, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

Emily felt a tight knot in her stomach as she watched the exchange. She dropped her gaze, feeling like a total idiot for actually being _jealous_ of how freely Hanna could act with Paige. The blonde pulled out a bear claw and held the box out for Emily. "Em?"

"None for me thanks. I don't think I could face anything solid right now." She declined, while cradling her stomach.  
"I figured as much." Paige smirked as she reached back in the bag and pulled out a paper cup with a plastic lid on it. Emily recognised the logo from the juice bar down the street from the Brew. "Bourbon's a bitch on the stomach. Here. It's watermelon, blueberries, basil, lime and a hint of cayenne pepper. It'll work wonders."

"Thanks." Emily managed a small smile as she picked up the cup and had a sip of the freshly squeezed juice. It was sweet, yet sharp, and it definitely helped to quench her thirst. It didn't do much to ease her stomach though; which still felt like it was doing somersaults as Emily chewed over just how considerate Paige was being towards her. She felt even worse for saying what she had to her the night before. Emily had caused most of the trouble between them, yet Paige was the one bending over backwards to make it right.

Emily was mostly silent through breakfast. She sat quietly sipping at her juice, trapped in her own thoughts as Hanna did most of the talking. Paige occasionally nodded along with the blonde, or contributed something to keep the conversation going, but her attention was mostly on Emily. She'd hoped to be able to offer some kind of peace offering after the way she'd been with her the previous night, but the hangover juice seemed pretty lame. The other girl was just as quiet and distant as she'd been in the car on the way home. It was only as she and Hanna were leaving that Emily actually spoke up. "Are you planning on training before school tomorrow?"

"Uh...yeah." Paige always practised in the mornings. She usually had the pool to herself, with most of her team mates preferring to train after school. She remembered Emily hinting at joining her for some practise sessions and quickly invited her. No matter what was going on between them, everything always seemed so much simpler in the water. "We could work on some relays, if you wanted to join me?"

"I'd like that." Emily nodded with a genuine smile. "Meet you there at half six?"  
"Sounds great." Paige grinned, thankful that things were finally starting to thaw out between them. "See you then, Princess."

Emily felt a flutter in the pit of her stomach as she thought back to her dream. Her smile wavered as she choked out a "Yeah, see ya." She couldn't get in to her car quick enough, and she pulled away with Paige waving from the top of the drive. Emily let out a sigh of relief, having felt like she was walking on broken glass all morning. Her newly discovered feelings for Paige McCullers had her questioning her every word and action around the other girl. The last thing she needed was for Paige to find out she was crushing on her.

"Okay, spill!" Hanna demanded from the passenger seat beside her. Emily was startled by the sudden outburst. She'd almost forgotten the blonde was in the car.  
"What are you talking about now?" Emily snapped, her irritation getting the better of her.

"You and Paige! What the hell is up with you two? You practically looked like you wanted to climb in to that cup of juice and _drown _yourself!" Hanna couldn't always be relied upon to be observant, but she hadn't missed how awkward things had been between the two girls over breakfast;

"If I tell you something, you have to _swear _not to freak out!" Emily sighed. She knew full well that Hanna wouldn't let it drop; and part of her needed to talk to someone about it all anyway. Emily felt like she was driving herself crazy, going over everything in her head on her own. "I think I might like Paige..."

"Well duh! You guys have been like two peas in a packet all week-"  
"Pod." Emily corrected her. She shook her head as she pulled over outside Hanna's house. "And I don't mean as a friend, Hanna. I _like _like Paige."  
"Shut the hell up!"  
"You said you wouldn't freak out!" Emily protested, as the blonde preceded to do just that.  
"Oh my god, tell me everything! Have you two-"

"I haven't slept with her Hanna! Jeez, I only just figured out I was in to her last night!" Emily huffed, already regretting telling the other girl anything.  
"I was going to ask if you'd kissed; but I guess McCullers _does_ work fast." Hanna tried to crack a joke, but it fell flat between them. She could see Emily was torn up about whatever had been going on. Swallowing the urge to say 'I told you so', she placed a hand on Emily's shoulder. "Come on inside. We can talk about it."  
"I should be getting home." Emily sighed. She felt like she had the weight of the world on her shoulders and her headache sill wasn't easing any.

Hanna wouldn't take no for an answer though, and she dragged her friend inside. Before she knew it, Emily was sitting on the blonde's bed, pouring her heart out and telling her everything; maybe a little too much. "You had a _sex_ dream?" Of course Hanna picked up on that.

"So not the point, Han!" Emily glared at her. "I could barely even look Paige in the eye this morning...I don't know what to do."  
"Tell her." Hanna shrugged, like the answer should have been obvious.  
"Are you insane?" Emily recoiled at her suggestion. "This is _Paige_ we're talking about! I mean, she's been with half the girls in town!"

"I wouldn't be so sure. I asked around about some of the girls she's supposed to have 'been' with, and it turns out most of them were talking out of their asses. As far as I can tell, Paige has only screwed that college girl."  
"How do you know about the college girl?" Emily probed. She knew there'd been rumours about Ally walking in on Paige and some older girl doing it, but gossip about Paige's sex life seemed to be greatly exaggerated.  
"Paige told me about her once. We were talking about our first times. She said it was a mistake. The girl wasn't really interested in her...she seemed really sad about it."

"Maybe that's her..." Emily mused, mostly to herself. "The girl Paige is so hung up on. The one she couldn't ask out." Emily elaborated as Hanna just stared at her blankly. "_That's _why I can't tell her how I feel. Paige is really in to some girl...some girl who isn't me. What if I ask her out, and she says yes, and she's just being nice? Like she is with all those other girls!"

"Em, you're not those other girls." Hanna soothed, trying to reassure her best friend as she pulled her in for a hug. "And so what if Paige is still hung up on some ex? That other girl's got nothing on you!"  
"You don't even know who she is." Emily pointed out glumly.  
"Like it matters!" Hanna argued back. "Em, you're gorgeous! And as far as I can see, you're getting all of Paige's time and attention right now...just tell her! You guys would be great together!"

"Thanks Han...but the truth is, I don't even know how I feel right now. Two weeks ago I couldn't stand to be in the same room as Paige, and now...now I just need some time to think things over."

"Fine, just don't take too long about it. Paige is a catch; and there's_ clearly_ a reason why so many girls have lied about sleeping with her."  
"That's probably because she's like the sweetest person on the planet." Emily huffed. She still couldn't get over how nice Paige had tried to be to her all morning, when she had every right to hate Emily for what she'd said to her about only having conquests; especially since Paige's reputation clearly wasn't everything it was cracked up to be.

* * *

Monday morning saw Emily waiting alone in the locker room at school. She'd turned up at the time she and Paige had agreed Sunday morning, but there was no sign of Paige. When Emily had found the locker room empty she'd checked in the pool, but the other girl was nowhere to be found. She waited a while longer, before trying to call her. Paige's phone just went straight through to voicemail, leaving Emily wondering whether she was avoiding her. Even if she had forgot they were supposed to be meeting, Paige was in the pool before school started practically every morning. It was a little suspicious that the one time she was meant to meet Emily, she hadn't shown.

"Fields?" Coach Fulton stopped on her way to her office as she caught sight of the other girl, still fully dressed in her tracksuit. "I don't usually see you in here so early. Putting in the overtime? I'm impressed."  
"I'm actually supposed to be meeting Paige. You haven't seen her, have you?"  
"Sorry." Fulton shook her head. "She's usually here before I am. Are you two still getting along okay?"

"Oh, yeah...we're great." Emily faked a smile she didn't feel, trying to fool their coach in to thinking she and Paige were still playing nice.  
"Good to hear it. You two were on fire at that last meet. Actually, _you _caught someone's attention. Dave Garner was here to watch McCullers, he's a scout for Stanford. He was pretty impressed with your performance."

"Really?" Emily had known there was a scout from Danby at the last meet, but she hadn't known Stanford had sent someone too; though it would make sense that they were scouting Paige. "Before or after I fell in to the pool?" Emily asked wryly, wondering whether she'd made an idiot of herself in front of a potential college.  
"He saw that; but if it helps any, he was impressed with McCullers' rescue technique." Fulton laughed, drawing a smile from her student. "From what I here, Paige is already a sure bet. He's coming back next month to watch _you. _So I'd keep up with the extra practise."

"Thanks, Coach." Emily mumbled as the older woman carried on to her office. When she'd been thinking about colleges, Emily had been looking at Danby and Penn State. She'd never really considered a school out of state, never mind all the way across the other side of the country. Stanford had an impressive swimming program though. Paige had mentioned it a few times when they'd been studying together. Getting a scholarship to a school like that would definitely open doors for Emily; not to mention how proud it would make her parents. Her first thought was to tell Paige about it, but then she remembered the other girl hadn't shown up and wasn't answering her phone.

It was lunch time before Emily finally spotted Paige. She was sitting a few tables away, with a few of the other girls from the swim team. If Emily had thought Paige was avoiding her, then her suspicions were confirmed as she slumped down at the lunch table she shared with Hanna and the other girls. "How come McCullers isn't sitting with us?" Spencer questioned. "Has the honeymoon finally worn off. Ow, Hanna! What the hell?" She snapped as the blonde kicked her under the table.

"Sorry. My foot slipped." Hanna answered rather unconvincingly. Emily sent her a sharp glare. She'd asked her not to tell the others about her crush on Paige. She needed to figure her feelings out for herself before she had other people questioning them. "Maybe she's having a team meeting? She is captain, after all."  
"A team meeting without Emily?" Aria pointed out, revealing Hanna's suggestion for the flimsy excuse it was. "Is everything okay, Em?" Aria hadn't missed the way Emily's gaze had dropped when Spencer had questioned why Paige wasn't with them.

"Everything's fine." Emily answered quietly. As she looked up, she spotted Paige getting to her feet and heading out of the cafeteria. "I'll be right back." She left her friends and caught up to Paige in the hall. She had to call out her name twice before she'd turned around to face her. Emily was all set to berate her for making plans and then ditching her, but something in the way Paige was slouching made her think twice. She looked tired. Like asleep on her feet tired.

"Are you okay?" Emily swallowed whatever she had been about to say to the other girl, suddenly overcome with concern. Maybe there was a good reason why she hadn't shown up at the pool earlier.

"Uh...yeah. Yeah, I'm good...What do you want, Emily?" Paige stared at her blankly, wondering why she had just chased after her.  
"How about an explanation for this morning?" Emily demanded, her concern wearing thin as Paige started to cop an attitude.  
"This morning... Oh crap. Em, I am _so _sorry! It completely slipped my mind!" She sounded a lot more apologetic as she realised she'd inadvertently stood the other girl up.

"It's fine. How about we swim tonight instead?" Emily suggested. She'd been hoping to smooth things over between them after how she'd acted at the weekend, but it wasn't exactly going to plan.  
"I can't. Sorry." Paige ducked her head, offering no other explanation as she turned to walk away.

"Wait a minute!" Emily reached out and caught hold of her hand. She bit at her lip, trying to ignoring how well theirs hands seemed to slot together. She let go as soon as she had Paige's attention. "If you don't want to be friends with me anymore then just say so. I'd rather that than-"

"Em, that's the last thing that I want!" Paige protested. Not sure where all of this was coming from. "I'm just really tied up at the moment...my Grandpa got taken in to hospital last night and I literally haven't been to sleep yet. If I get in the water it'll be you rescuing me this time." She offered Emily a weak smile, hoping to stop the other girl from blowing up at her.

"Oh, god. Paige, I'm so sorry! I'm such a jerk..." Emily cursed herself internally. Every time she opened her mouth, she seemed to be putting her foot that much further in to it.

"Did you think I was blowing you off?" Paige questioned, her expression turning from one of pure fatigue to concern. "I would never do that to you, Em. I would have called you, but with everything that was going on, I forgot all about it...plus I left my phone at home. I came straight to school from the hospital. I'm really sorry-"

"You don't need to apologise." Emily cut her off. "Really. It's fine. We can do something some other time, when your grandfather's doing better."  
"Thanks." Paige swallowed hard. Her grandpa was seventy-two and riddled with pneumonia. There was a good chance he wasn't going to get better. "How about we hang out Wednesday night? You're not working and I should be a little more conscious by then."

"Wednesday sounds perfect." Emily smiled, still feeling like a jack-ass for giving the other girl such a hard time. "I hope your grandfather's feeling better soon. And you know where to reach me, if you need to talk or anything." Emily stepped forward and wrapped her arms around her friend, offering her a supportive hug; though it was as much for herself as for Paige.

"Thanks." Paige mumbled, her eyes closed over as she buried her face in the crook of Emily's neck and tried not to cry. She'd purposefully avoided sitting with Emily and the others at lunch, so that she wouldn't break down in front of the other girl. Her plan had fallen apart when Emily had come after her. She hugged Emily back, telling herself that she would indulge in her embrace for just a few moments more before pulling safely back. For Paige, when it came to Emily Fields, pulling away always seemed to be the safest route to take; it was practically the story of her life. 

* * *

**A/N: As ever, thanks for reading and for the awesome feedback! I know this is a bit of a slow burn, but there will be plenty of Paily goodness further in to make up for it! I'm back at work now, so trying to update when I can. **


	15. Chapter 15

"When you said I'd see you Wednesday, I didn't think you actually meant I _wouldn't_ seeyou until today." Emily had seen Paige plenty of times since lunch on Monday; in class and in passing in the hallways, but she'd barely even heard from her outside of school.  
"Sorry. I just haven't been great company the last few days. I think I'm even starting to annoy myself." Paige joked as she closed the door behind her. She was looking better than she had on Monday, but not by much. "I meant to call-"

"It's fine. I was just worried about you, is all." Emily followed Paige upstairs to her room. She paused at the door, taking in the sight of Paige's unmade bed, along with the clothes strewn about her floor. Emily had never seen the other girl's room looking so dishevelled. It was still tidier than Emily's room, but by Paige's standards it was practically a bomb site. Paige hastily picked up her laundry and pulled her covers back over her bed.  
"Sorry, I-"

"Paige, stop apologising." Emily dropped down on to her bed. "I came over to help cheer you up, not make you feel bad."  
"Sorry..." Paige started again, but she stopped herself and started to laugh. "Okay, I promise not to say that word for the rest of the night."  
"Good. It's officially a dirty word." Emily grinned as she shrugged off her jacket. She was wearing a tank top and Paige could barely keep her eyes off of her. She was starting to think that the other girl didn't own any tops with sleeves. "So what's the plan, McCullers? Want to watch some scary movies?"

"I dunno, Fields. You got pretty freaked out over the last one we watched. Maybe you should stick to cartoons?" Paige grinned.  
"It was a movie about killer dolls! Of course it freaked me out!" Emily huffed. "Give me zombies any day of the week... Not that it seemed to bother _you! _You went out like a light!"  
"I fell asleep first?" Paige quizzed with a small frown. She'd thought that Emily had dropped off first on Friday, and that was why she'd ended up spending the night.  
"Well you kept nodding off." Emily shrugged, a little bashfully. She got to her feet and made her way over to the bookshelves that Paige had her DVDs sitting on. She started skimming through them, looking for something to watch. "I guess I must have fallen asleep too."

"Well don't pick something too scary, we don't want you having nightmares. Maybe we could watch _Twilight?_"  
"If I find out you have _any _of those movies, I'm leaving." Emily glared back at Paige, only half teasing.  
"I don't." The other girl laughed as she walked up behind her and placed her chin on Emily's shoulder. Emily struggled to keep staring ahead. She fixed her gaze on the shelves, instead of giving in and turning her head to catch Paige's lips; like she wanted to. "Just ignore the collection of _High School Musical _DVDs."

"Oh my god, you're not even kidding!" Emily giggled as she caught sight of them. "So big bad Paige McCullers likes musicals, huh?"  
"Don't tell." Paige chuckled, her voice husky and her lips right by Emily's ear. Her hand found the small of Emily's back, making it pretty hard for the other girl to focus on anything but her. "Okay, you decide on the movie, and I'll order us a pizza."  
"Okay." Emily choked out with a small nod. Paige pulled away, and she missed the contact almost immediately; Emily had only recently started to notice just how often Paige would touch her. Whether it was a hand on her back, or a light touch to her arm; every innocent gesture felt like sweet torture.

She tried to put it to the back of her mind as she skimmed through Paige's collection of DVDs. She settled on something that looked interesting, and went downstairs to ask Paige if she wanted to watch it. She found the other girl standing in the kitchen, with her hands against the counter and her head hung low. Emily paused at the door. Something in Paige's expression stopped her in her tracks. Her eyes were closed over and her face was twisted. She looked like someone struggling to keep it together, like she was drowning.

Emily was torn between going over to help, and hanging back. Paige was a very private person, and proud too. Emily wasn't sure she'd appreciate her fussing over her. She knew the other girl was struggling with her grandfather being ill. Emily was pretty sure that was why she had barely seen her all week. Paige wasn't the type to let anyone see her struggling.

Emily made her decision and crept silently back towards the stairs. She made sure to make a racket as she thundered down the last few steps. By the time she reached the kitchen again, Paige was putting down the house phone, like she'd only just finished making the call. "Pizza should be here in thirty." She offered Emily an easy smile, like she hadn't just been having a breakdown moments earlier.

"Great. I thought we could watch this. It looks good." Emily held up the DVD in her hand, biting back the urge to ask Paige if she was okay.  
"_In The Flesh? _Yeah, it's awesome. It's a TV series though...so you might end up staying and watching it all."  
"Fine by me." Emily grinned, happy with her choice. "Is your dad working late tonight?"  
"No. He's having dinner at the club... then he's going by the hospital."  
"It must be hard for him, his dad being ill and all?" Emily didn't want to push it, but she hoped Paige would start talking if she brought the matter up in a roundabout way.

"What? Oh, Grandpa Allan isn't my dad's dad...he's my mom's." Paige explained as she grabbed two sodas out of the fridge and lead Emily back in to the living room. "Unlike my mom, he didn't walk out on us." Paige popped the DVD on and took a seat beside Emily on the sofa. She was hesitant at first, but she slowly started to open up a little more.  
"My Grandpa almost ended up raising me. He and Dad never really got along before I was born. My mom was already off the rails by the time she found out she was pregnant. She walked out and he didn't hear anything until she showed up with me... I was three days old. When she disappeared again, my grandparents tried for custody. They didn't think my dad could cope...My dad didn't either." Paige forced a laugh. Her father had barely just turned twenty-two when she'd been born. Fresh out of college, with no house and no job, he hadn't seen how he could be expected to raise a child. He'd come close to signing his rights over to Paige's grandparents, but sheer stubbornness had stopped him from giving in.

"For what it's worth, he did a pretty good job." Emily offered Paige a genuine smile.  
"Thanks." The other girl blushed as she ducked her head. "My dad and I don't always get along, he practically had a cardiac when I came out; but he's cool with it now, and I wouldn't change him for the world."  
"My dad was really great when I came out. It was my mom who flipped." Emily sighed, remembering how weird her mom had been with her and Maya at first. "She refused to call Maya anything other than my 'friend' for like six months."

"Have you spoken to her recently? Maya I mean, not your mom..." Paige tried to sound casual as she asked after Emily's ex, but that didn't stop a heavy awkwardness settling between them. Maya had been the reason they'd blown up with each other on Saturday, and despite them both apologising for it, the issue was still raw between them.  
"We've shared a few messages." Emily shrugged, tying to play the contact down. "We're not getting back together though. I told you, it's over."  
"Good. She's bad news Em. She'll only hurt you again-"  
"Paige..." Emily sighed in to her hand, knowing exactly where they were headed. "Can we please just not talk about Maya. I'm here with _you, _okay?" Emily only realised how that sounded a beat too late; right after Paige shot her a curious look in return.

Thankfully, she was saved from having to explain herself as the doorbell sounded. "Pizza's here." Emily forced a smile, trying to distract the other girl from what she'd just said.  
"I'll get it." Paige got to her feet and started walking towards the door, mulling Emily's words over in her head. She was preoccupied as she opened the door, so much so that she failed to recognise the delivery girl. "Hey, how much do I owe you?"  
"Hi to you too, McCullers." The other girl shot her a sly grin. Her name was either Melinda, or Melody, something along those lines. Paige couldn't quite remember. They'd been out for coffee before, but as usual, Paige hadn't called her for a second date.

"Hey...Mel. Sorry about that, I was a million miles away." Paige played it cool, aware that Emily was sitting nearby and could hear every word. She was only just starting to accept that Paige wasn't the biggest douche in town. She didn't need to meet yet another girl that Paige had dated before.  
"No problem." The other girl beamed. She was a year or two older, though Paige couldn't remember what she was studying in college. She hadn't paid that much attention to her to be honest. It had been one of those dates that had ended with her making up an excuse to leave.

Paige hoped to be able to get rid of her quickly, but she was having trouble finding her wallet. As she patted down the many pockets of her combats, the other girl leant in close, pushing out her chest as she batted her dark eyelashes at her. "I'm sure you can make it up to me. How about we try for that coffee again?"  
"Uh...I..." Paige stammered, unsure of how to turn the girl down politely. It had always been easier for her to just say yes, and to deal with the actual date at a later time. With Emily behind her, that didn't seem like a viable option. To make matters worse, she _still_ couldn't find her wallet.

Suddenly, Emily was coming up behind her, one arm slipping around her waist while her head found her shoulder. "Babe, you left this on the couch." Emily held up her wallet for her, but Paige could barely focus to take it from her; not with Emily's breath hot at her ear. "Hurry up, the movie's about to start." Emily pressed a kiss to Paige's cheek, before flashing the pizza girl an insincere smile. Getting rid of her after that was a cinch.

"You looked like you needed some backup there." Emily grinned as Paige made her way back over to the couch, pizza box in hand and a shell shocked expression on her face. Her cheek still felt like it was tingling.  
"Yeah...thanks." She mumbled and dropped down next to her. "You'd make a great wingman." Paige joked, starting to loosen up again as she divided the pizza in half and placed their respective pieces on either side of the cardboard box.

Once they were settled, Paige started the show they'd picked to watch and began picking at her pizza. She'd barely eaten anything for days, sick with worry for her ailing grandfather. "So...the pizza delivery girl? Seriously?" Emily cracked, highly amused by the other girl's discomfort. "Could you be any more clichéd?"  
"You should see the FedEx lady." Paige laughed, melting the last of the tension between them. All talk of Maya and Saturday night was forgotten as they tucked in to their pizza and Paige began to explain the premise of the zombie show they were watching.

"Is that pineapple on your pizza?" Emily quizzed, spotting the little cubes of fruit on Paige's slices. "Ew. Who has _fruit _on a pizza?"  
"It's good!" Paige protested, defending her topping choice. "Don't knock it till you've tried it, Miss _I-only-want-pepperoni-on-mine_. Here." Paige held up an untouched slice for Emily to try, but she shook her head at it.  
"There's no way I'm trying that! It's got jalapeños on it, with _fruit_! Your pizza is an abomination." Emily laughed, turning her head as Paige inched closer, trying to persuade her to take a bite. The other girl was practically sitting on top of her.

"It might not sound pretty, but it tastes _amazing_!" Paige argued, refusing to give up. "Sometimes, things that shouldn't work together just do. Look at us, did you ever think we'd be playing nice like this?"  
"No." Emily admitted with a sheepish smile. She had never expected to get along with the other girl so well. "I guess unexpected can be good." Stealing her nerve, Emily leant in to take a bite from the slice Paige was holding up. The flavour of the hot peppers mingled nicely with the sweetness of the pineapple, making something unexpectedly tasty.

"You like?" Paige grinned, and Emily did her best to try and keep her expression neutral as she shrugged her shoulders at her.  
"It's okay I guess..." Even as she said it, she was reaching over to Paige's side of the box, helping herself to one of her slices. Paige watched on with a smug grin, which Emily pointedly ignored. She finally caved with a laugh as Paige refused to stop staring at her expectantly. "Okay, next time you're choosing the pizza."

The two girls spent the next few hours on the couch, with Paige occasionally moving to grab them some sodas. They started out on their separate sides, but as some point in the night Emily ended up lying spread across the seats, with her legs up over Paige. The other girl had one arm slung over the back of the couch, with her other hand resting on Emily's ankle. The lights were off and Emily was struggling to keep her eyes open as Paige's thumb absently trailed over her bare ankle, drawing intricate patterns on to her skin.

There was no ulterior motive behind it. Emily wasn't even sure Paige was aware she was doing it; or what effect it was actually having on her. Paige seemed completely absorbed in the show they were watching, with her eyes were fixed on the screen and her fingers working of their own accord. Emily couldn't remember being so comfortable in a long time. She felt like she could just lie there forever, letting Paige's fingers work their way over the length of her body. Her eyes closed over as she allowed herself a moment to indulge in the thought of Paige's hand wandering higher.

The moment was interrupted as the front door opened and the lights flickered on, flooding the room with light. Emily's eyes snapped open, and she winced at the light as she quickly pulled her legs back and tucked them underneath herself. "Oh, hi girls. Sorry about that." Nick McCullers stood awkwardly by the front door as his daughter glared at him. He had the feeling he'd just walked in on something, but he didn't dare to ask. Paige looked irritated enough without him embarrassing her any further. "Paige, I'm going to head straight up. Don't stay up too late, it's a school night."

"Okay, Dad." Paige stretched out, fighting back a yawn as she bid her father goodnight. She turned her attention back to Emily once he was gone. The other girl had pulled her legs away so fast when the lights had turned on, that Paige was surprised she hadn't sprained something. "There's only a couple of episodes left, if you want to stay and watch them?" Paige offered, hoping the other swimmer would agree to stay.  
"Maybe we can finish them another time? I might have been asleep for half of this last one." Emily chuckled softly as she got to her feet. She let out a deep yawn as she tried to work out the kink in her shoulder from lying on her side for so long.

"Are you sure you're okay to drive?" Paige followed her to the door. "I don't want you wrapping your car around a tress because you were half asleep."  
"You worry too much." Emily rolled her eyes at her; but far from being annoying, the other girl's concern was endearing. "I'm fine. I'll see you tomorrow." Emily stepped forward, and Paige expected her to go in for a hug; so both girls were surprised when Emily kissed her. The act was almost an unconscious one, like Emily's body was on autopilot. Their lips were only pressed together for a matter of seconds. Emily pulled away before Paige could get a chance to respond.

Emily couldn't believe what she'd just done as she pulled back. Her eyes were wide and her lips were parted, but she couldn't make any words come out. Paige looked equally stunned, staring up at her with an unreadable expression. "I...I've got to go." Emily practically flew out of the door and in to her car, once again denying Paige the opportunity to respond.

The other girl stood by her door, leaning against the wooden frame for support as her fingers trailed lightly over her lips. The kiss had been brief, but Paige could still feel it lingering on her lips. She had been too stunned to react at first. After all, Emily Fields kissing her was like all of her Christmases coming at once; but Emily had pulled back before she'd been able to kiss her back. She'd looked more shocked by it than Paige.

Paige locked up and headed upstairs. She was toying with the idea of calling Emily and demanding an explanation for what had happened. Her fingers hovered over the other girl's name in her phone, but she couldn't bring herself to press it. Emily could have set new land speed records with how quickly she ran away. That wasn't exactly how Paige had imagined her first kiss with Emily Fields going; though in truth, she'd never imagined Emily being the one to instigate it.

Sighing, she tossed her phone aside, deciding to give the other girl some space. It was no good Paige chasing her for answers, not when it looked like Emily hadn't had any for herself.

* * *

"You _kissed _her!" Hanna squealed in delight as she and Emily sat in the quad before the start of school. Emily was sipping a particularly strong coffee as she told the blonde all about her night in with Paige. "Oh my god, what did she say? Did she kiss you back? Are you guys together now?"  
"Slow down!" Emily groaned at her overenthusiastic best friend. Her head felt heavy and foggy, like she was nursing a hangover; even though she hadn't had a drop to drink. "She didn't say anything. I didn't give her a chance. I got in my car and got the hell out of there."

"Em! Seriously, you missed the perfect opportunity to find out how she feels about you!" Hanna chided.  
"I don't need to know how she feels about me!" Emily argued. "I already know how she feels about this mystery college girl...I can't compete with that."  
"You don't have to." Hanna reached over and placed her hand over Emily's. "Whoever this girl is, there's no competition! Trust me, you're nobody's consolation prize, Em. Go talk to Paige, you _need_ to tell her how you feel."

"What if she's not interested?" Emily argued, feeling insecure. Sure, there was an element of flirtation between them, and Paige always seemed to be looking for excuses to touch her, but what if that was all platonic? What if that was just how Paige was with everybody, and Emily was just reading too much in to it? She'd be humiliated. Worse still, she'd lose her new friendship with her.

"Please." Hanna snorted. "How could she not be? You two are practically made for each other! If Paige McCullers doesn't see that, then she's an idiot!"  
"Thanks, Han." Emily smiled meekly as she reached over to hug her friend.  
"No problem, just don't try and kiss me...kidding!" She added as Emily glared at her. "Go find your girl!"

Emily did as she was told and went off to find Paige. She figured the other swimmer would be in the natatorium, and her hunch paid off as she found her in the locker rooms. Paige had just finished changing in to her tracksuit, and her hair was still wet and hanging loose. She looked like a deer caught in headlights as Emily walked in to the room. "Hey." She greeted her with a strained smile, it didn't do much for Emily's confidence.

"Hey...I need to talk to you. About last night-" Emily started, hoping to finish before her confidence could abandon her. Paige didn't give her a chance though.  
"You don't have to...I get it." Paige surprised her with a shrug. "Really, I do. I know your head's been all over the place, with everything with Maya... and you and your friends are really close." The explanation that Paige was offering didn't make much sense, but she'd spent the whole night convincing herself that the kiss had meant nothing; that Emily had been half asleep and thinking about someone else when it had happened.

"Right." Emily jumped right on it. The conviction that Hanna had instilled her having vanished completely over how easily Paige was brushing off the accidental kiss. "I'm sorry about that... I guess I just forgot myself. I'm just so used to kissing Hanna goodbye." The lies tumbled easily out of her mouth as she clung desperately to the lifeline that Paige had thrown her.

"No problem." Paige smiled through clenched teeth. A small part of her had been hoping Emily would tell her she was wrong, but she was hardly surprised there was a simple reason behind their kiss. It wasn't like someone like Emily could ever be interested in someone like her. Paige tied her hair back before slinging her kitbag over her shoulder. She stepped in close and pressed her lips to Emily's cheek, trying to show there were no hard feeling between them. "I need to go see Coach. Catch you later, Princess."

"So how did it go?" Hanna demanded as Emily sunk back in to the seat opposite her at their table, out in the quad. Caleb had finally turned up, and was sitting beside his girlfriend with his head resting on the table and his phone in his hands.  
"I might need to start kissing you." Emily huffed in defeat. Caleb slowly raised his head, giving both girls a quizzical look. "Only in front of Paige." Emily quickly added, but that hardly elaborated anything for Caleb.  
"Girls..." He shook his head with a sigh, before placing it back down on the table.

Hanna was shaking her head right along with him. "Em, you're a total pussy!"  
"Tell me about it." Emily whimpered as she caught sight of Paige crossing the quad, her head down and her attention elsewhere; she failed to notice just how hard Paige was trying to avoid looking over at her, or the way her fingers travelled absently to her lips once she was out of sight.


	16. Chapter 16

"Excuse me?" Emily Fields was busy wrestling with the filter in the espresso machine, so she had her back to the customer who was trying to get her attention.  
"Just a second!" She finished fixing the machine, before turning around. It was late Friday afternoon and the Brew was pretty quiet. She had expected to be greeted by one of the group of old ladies who were having their monthly book group in the corner; but instead she was face to face with a young blonde woman. She looked to be a couple of years older, and if Emily wasn't mistaken, she was also checking her out.

Emily dried her hands on the apron tied around her waist and offered her customer a friendly smile. "Hi, what can I get you?"  
"Actually, I have something for you." The blonde was holding a stack of flyers and she handed a few over for Emily to take a look at. They were advertising the LGBT group at Hollis. "I was wondering if I could leave a few of these here?"  
"Sure." Emily answered and placed them down on the counter. She felt the other girl's eyes lingering on her. When she looked up again, the girl was outright staring at her; like she was trying to make up her mind about something.

"I'm Samara." The blonde held out her hand and offered Emily a charming smile as she leant over the counter.  
"Emily." As she replied, Emily noticed Hanna and Caleb walking in through the front door. She nodded at them as they took a table by the window.  
"Well, Emily, the group meets on Wednesday afternoons; if it's something you'd be interested in?" Samara was obviously flirting, trying to get a read on the young barrista.

Emily had swim training on Wednesdays, but she didn't want to appear rude and turn the other girl's offer down outright. "Sure, I'll think about it."  
"Great. Why don't I give you my number? You can call me if you decide to come along." The two girls swapped numbers, under the watchful eye of Hanna Marin.

"Who was that?" Hanna walked up to the counter the moment Samara left. "Did you just get her number?"  
"I did." Emily answered with a coy smile as she put her phone away, back inside the pocket of her apron. "Her name's Samara, and she's a junior at Hollis."  
"_And _she gave you her number!" Hanna repeated, her eyes wide and accusing as they scrutinised her friend.  
"Han, it's no big deal! She was flirting a little bit and she gave me her number. It's not like I've never gotten a girl's number before!"  
"But what about Paige?"

"What about her?" Emily answered a little more flippantly than she'd meant to. She let out a heavy sigh as she leant down against the counter. "We're not dating, Hanna."  
"Well you could be, if you'd just pull your damn finger out of your-"  
"Hanna!"  
"Sorry." The blonde shrugged, not sounding very apologetic at all. "But it's true. I don't care whether Paige is in to some college girl, she'd forget all about that bitch if you just told her you were in to her!"

"Paige has a lot going on right now... and I don't even really know how I feel. We've only been getting along for a few weeks. What if in another three weeks we're at each other's throats again?" Emily objected. "I just want to be sure before anything happens. In the meantime, there's no harm in me taking a girl's number...especially when she runs the Hollis LGBT group."  
"So maybe she knows the girl Paige slept with two years ago?" Hanna smirked, easily following the other girl's logic. Hollis was a small college, and there was a good chance Paige's mystery ex would know someone as outgoing as Samara. "Good plan; but I don't think it matters who her ex is. Paige would be crazy to want anyone else over you-"

"Sara, hi!" Emily looked straight past Hanna, willing her to take the hint as she greeted Paige's aunt a little more enthusiastically than she needed to. She didn't want Sara overhearing anything and taking it back to Paige. Thankfully Hanna made herself scarce and headed back over to sit with Caleb.

"Hey, Josh." Emily beamed at the seven year old as he rounded the counter and threw his arms around her legs. Sara followed him over, cradling her youngest son against her chest.  
"Hi Em! I was hoping I'd catch you here. My birthday's coming up next month, and I'm going out with a few friends-"  
"Oh, do you need a sitter?" Emily asked, wondering why she would be asking her and not Nick, or Paige.

"No, silly, I'm inviting you! Paige is coming along, and I figured you could come too! The boys are _supposed_ to be staying with their father, but Nick will probably end up having them."  
"Oh, thanks... Just let me know the date and I'll make sure I'm not working." Emily hadn't been expecting the invite. "Wait, does Paige know you're asking me?"  
"Not yet, but I doubt she'll mind." Sara reassured her with a smirk. "I'll get Paige to call you later. Come on Josh, time to go home."

"But I want to stay with Emily!" The little boy pouted, refusing to give up the grip he had on Emily's leg.  
"She's got to work sweetie. You can see her some other time." Sara tried to pull him away, but her eldest son wouldn't budge.  
"I'm finished in like ten minutes. If you want, I could take him for an hour?" Emily suggested. "I was just meeting my friends here anyway."  
"I couldn't ask you to do that!" Sara protested, but Josh was already removing his coat.  
"It's no trouble, really." Emily wasn't usually that great with kids, but Paige's cousin had taken a definite shine to her, and the feeling was mutual.

Sara finally relented and left Josh with Emily. She bought him a milkshake and left him with Hanna and Caleb while she went in to the back to take off her apron, and grab her stuff out of her locker. When she got back to the table, she found Josh hanging over Caleb's shoulder as he watched him play PSP. "The kid's cute. Kind of like a mini-Paige, only with shorter hair." Hanna mused. "How old is he? His mom doesn't look old enough to have a kid that big."

"I'm seven!" Josh looked up from the game with a proud grin, reminding the girls that little ears were listening. Emily dropped her voice to a whisper, to avoid Josh overhearing them talking about his mom.  
"She had him really young... I think she was nineteen or something."  
"Wow. I couldn't imagine having a kid at that age. If having that fake baby taught me anything, it's that I'm not ready to have total responsibility for another human being."  
"You didn't even need to take care of it!" Emily pointed out, still a little bitter that Hanna and Caleb had passed the class without having to put any effort in to it.  
"Exactly. Could you imagine how much harder it would be if it had of cried all the time?"  
"I don't have to imagine it, Hanna." Emily grumbled petulantly. "Some of us _actually _had to live with a screaming baby for two weeks."

* * *

"You must be hungry." Emily grinned as she found Paige warming down outside of the Brew. The other girl was dressed in her running gear, with her hair tied back. It was early Saturday morning, and Paige had probably been up for hours; while Emily had barely just dragged herself out of bed. She was running late in opening the coffee shop.  
"I thought I was going to starve to death waiting for you." Paige cracked. She waited for Emily to open the door and then followed her inside. She pulled a stool up to the counter as the other girl started setting the machines up.

Paige left her to it, knowing her fellow Shark wasn't a morning person, and needed to focus on what she was doing as she got ready to open. She sipped at the glass of orange juice Emily had sat down in front of her and waited for her to finish what she was doing. Emily poured herself a cup of coffee. She started to perk up a bit once the caffeine hit her system. Before long, she had Paige's breakfast plated up and she'd topped up her orange juice too. The two girls took a seat at one of the tables by the door, and Emily savoured the twenty or so minutes she had before she needed to open.

"Don't you eat before your run?" She quizzed, amused by how eagerly Paige was tucking in to her eggs. She hadn't been kidding about feeling like she was starving.  
"I'm a growing girl!" Paige protested. "Besides, I ran five miles before you'd even had your shower this morning! You should join me some time, you might even like it."  
"In the shower?" Emily frowned as she looked up from her phone. She'd only been half listening to Paige as she'd checked her messages.  
"Wow, you really don't do mornings do you?" Paige shook her head with a smirk. She was pretty sure the mental image of Emily Fields joining her in the shower was going to stay with her all day. "I meant _running. _You should come running with me some time."

"Oh." Emily blushed. Paige inviting her to go running made much more sense. "Sure. I guess I need to raise my game if I want to impress that Stanford scout-"  
"Stanford?" Paige put her knife and fork down, her attention squarely fixed on her team mate. "They're scouting you?"  
"I guess." Emily felt her blush deepening as she shrugged. "The Stanford scout was at that last meet, to watch you. Coach said he was pretty impressed with both of us... It totally slipped my mind to tell you about it. It's not that big a deal anyway, they might not even want me-"

"That's...that's huge!" Emily hadn't been sure how she would react, but Paige seemed excited by the news. "Of course Stanford would want you! They'd be crazy not to!" Paige was grinning ear to ear at the thought that she and Emily could end up at the same college next year. Her enthusiasm was infectious, and for the first time Emily found herself genuinely considering going to school out of state.  
"The scout's coming back to our next meet, so I want to get serious about my training... That's why I want to start swimming in the mornings, before school."

"That sounds like a good idea. I'm sorry I haven't been around the pool much lately. I know I said I'd help you train..."  
"It's fine." Emily reassured her as she placed her hand over Paige's. Her thumb started brushing lightly over her wrist. "You've got a lot on right now."  
"It seems like you do too." Paige observed, as Emily's phone went off again.

She drew her hand back to read the text she'd just received, leaving Paige instantly missing her touch. "It's just a...a friend." The message was from Samara, the girl Emily had met the previous week. They'd shared a few texts and Samara had invited her out for coffee later. Emily had been unsure about it at first, but she'd eventually relented and agreed to meet up with the blonde; if only to serve as a distraction to stop her from thinking about Paige quite so much. There was also a good chance she could find out some more about the college girl Paige had been with. "We're meeting up later. She's just checking in to see if I can still make it."

"At 8am? _She _must be pretty keen." Paige remarked dryly. "I was going to ask if you wanted to come over tonight; Josh has been asking after you. We're having family night tonight...but I guess you're too busy."  
"I could reschedule? It really isn't that important."  
"Forget it. You're _friend _is clearly looking forward to coffee." Paige bristled as she got to her feet. Leaning over the table, she pressed a kiss to Emily's cheek. It seemed to have developed in to their new way of saying goodbye to one another.  
"You're leaving?" Emily couldn't hide the disappointment in her voice, but Paige was too disgruntled to notice it.  
"I've got stuff to do... and you're meant to be working. I'll catch you later, Fields."

Hours later and Emily was still dwelling on what had happened at the Brew. She'd come close to calling Paige a few times, but had chickened out before she could make the call; just like she'd written and deleted half a dozen text messages to her. Emily would have much rather been going over to Paige's house to play video games with her and Josh, but she'd already confirmed with Samara. She huffed out a sigh as she searched her closet for her leather jacket. It was cold outside, and she wanted something that would keep her warm if she ended up staying out late. It was only during her third search of her closet that she realised she'd left it at Paige's house, the last time she'd stayed over.

Emily picked up her phone again, toying with the idea of calling to see if she could go over and get it. The missing jacket would give her a good excuse to see Paige again. "Get a grip, Fields." She berated herself as she tossed her phone aside. She might as well of had 'desperate' tattooed across her forehead. Emily settled on a letterman style jacket instead. She pulled it on over her chequered shirt and gave herself a quick once over in the mirror. Meeting Samara for coffee wasn't exactly a date, so Emily hadn't put a whole lot of effort in to getting ready. She'd put on a little make-up, but she'd kept her hair tied back, hoping to come across as casual.

"You look nice, Sweetie." Pam caught her daughter coming down the stairs and offered her a warm smile. "Are you going somewhere?"  
"I'm meeting a friend at the Brew." Emily kept her answer vague, hoping to get out of the door without getting the third degree.  
"Paige?" Pam tried to keep her tone neutral, but she couldn't hide her interest. Emily bit back a sigh. With her hand on the door, she'd almost made it out.  
"No. I'm meeting somebody else...her name's Samara."

"Oh." Pam gave up all pretence. "And will I be meeting Samara sometime soon?"  
"It's nothing like that, Mom. Samara's_ just_ a friend."  
"Like Paige?" Pam shot back. She was barely biting back a smirk as Emily rolled her eyes in defeat. She promised not to be out late and called out a goodbye over her shoulder as she fled out the front door.

Main Street was usually a nightmare for parking on a Saturday night, so Emily had left early to give herself plenty of time to find a space. She ended up parking down the street from the Brew, facing the Apple Rose Grille. Her grip on the steering wheel tightened as she spotted Sara and Josh through the front window. It looked like they were ordering take out for dinner. Her heart actually ached as she realised she could have been joining them. Paige hadn't waited around long enough to let Emily change her plans though. She'd bolted out the door without even offering up a valid reason for why she was leaving so soon. Picking up her cell, Emily ignored the flutter she felt in the pit of her stomach. Holding her phone to her ear with her shoulder, she climbed out of her car and locked it. The phone rang a few times before it was finally answered. "Hey, It's Emily..."

* * *

"Where you going kiddo? Your aunt's going to be back with dinner any minute." Nick McCullers crossed his arms over his chest as he leant against the banister at the bottom of the stairs. Paige was sitting on the last step, her head down as she fastened her laces.  
"I'm not really hungry. Save me some and I'll get it later-"  
"Paige." Nick stepped in her way as she made for the front door. "You already went out running this morning. You're going to do yourself an injury. That's not something we can afford; not with Stanford so close-"

"So I'll walk." Paige argued. Her father mentioning Stanford only made her think about Emily some more, which served to increase the throbbing ache at the back of her head. She had to get out. She hated being cooped up whenever she felt so restless; being surrounded by four walls made her feel like a caged animal, and the only way to shake it off was for Paige to go wandering.

"Paige..." Nick sighed with a shake of his head. His daughter was a carbon copy of himself, so he knew full she was trying to run away from something that was bothering her. "I know you're under a lot of pressure right now, between swimming and your grandfather...you mom; but Saturdays are family time. You can go out once the boys are in bed, but right now your place is here. With your family."

"Please, Dad. I just need to get out. Give me an hour?" Paige couldn't look her father in the eye as she begged him to move out of her way. She'd been like a bear with a sore head all day, ever since she'd found out Emily had a date. Her mood had been growing worse the closer it got to nightfall. She'd thought about calling Emily, or swinging by her house to apologise for storming out of the Brew that morning; but she'd chickened out and practically driven herself insane thinking about who Emily could be meeting.

She hadn't mentioned anybody new in her life, and Paige had been on the understanding that Emily was still struggling to move on after her relationship with Maya. The thought that Emily could be out on a date with her ex had Paige's blood boiling. Nick might not have known what was really wrong with her, but he could still see the anguish in her expression. He stepped aside to let her out the door. "Stay safe, and be back in an hour."  
"Thanks, Dad." Paige gave her old man a brief hug before bolting out the door.

She'd barely popped her headphones in and walked to the end of the drive when Sara's SUV pulled up beside her. "Hey kiddo, where you headed?" Paige rolled her eyes as she took her headphones out.  
"For a walk. I'll be back later; please, save the 'family time' speech. I already got it from Dad."  
"Okay." Sarah shrugged, the older woman giving in far too easily for Paige's liking. She had to be playing some kind of angle. "I'll tell Emily you said hi."  
"What?" Paige frowned. Her confusion didn't last long as Emily's Toyota pulled up behind Sara's car.

"You can thank me later." Sara smirked. She unbuckled Josh's booster seat before helping him climb down out of the SUV, leaving Paige to greet her friend.  
"Em, hey." She was grinning like an idiot as Emily locked up her car. "I thought you had plans?"  
"I did. They changed when I bumped in to Josh and your aunt outside of the Grille. The little guy's persistent." Emily laughed. She self-consciously brushed a loose strand of hair back behind her ear, wishing she'd put a bit more of an effort in to her appearance. She hadn't expected to end up outside of Paige's house; but she was more than happy to be there.

"It's a McCullers family trait." Paige joked as they headed back up to the house.  
"Were you going somewhere?" Emily asked. She'd noticed Paige was wearing running gear, but her clothes were different to the ones she'd been wearing that morning.  
"Oh...no. Change of plans." Paige shrugged. She made a mental note to head straight upstairs and change. "I hope you know what you've let yourself in for, Princess. We're playing Monopoly after dinner; it can get a little intense." She shot the other girl a challenging look, which Emily met without faltering.  
"Isn't that the McCullers family motto?"

Paige hadn't been lying. An hour after dinner, Emily found herself playing the most competitive game of Monopoly she'd ever been involved in. Dinner had been nice, with Emily and the whole McCullers clan sitting around the dining room table. It had been a long time since Emily had been present at a big family dinner. Her dad had been down at the army base in Texas for months, so it had just been Emily and her mom rattling around the house.

"Here you go, Josh." Emily handed a wad of bills over to the seven year old as he struggled to count out enough to pay Paige. He'd landed on one of her properties, which had a hotel on it. The boy was playing against four adults and he wasn't fairing well.  
"That's cheating!" Paige protested. If Emily had thought she was competitive in the water, she'd seen nothing until she'd taken the other girl on at a board game.

"We're just pooling our resources and opening a join bank account, right partner?" Emily grinned down at the youngster.  
"Right!" Josh gave her a high five as he shuffled closer to her. There was no denying he'd taken a liking to Paige's new friend, just like the rest of her family had.  
"Thank you, Emily. This family has a tendency to take winning a little too seriously." Sara pointed out, glaring at her big brother.  
"I didn't notice you splashing the cash to help." Nick shot back, getting in a dig of his own.

"Hey, I feed him and dress him, paying rent is his problem!" Sara smirked as her brother rolled the dice, and landed on one of her train stations. "Speaking of which, pay up!"  
"What's the point in playing if you're not in to win?" Paige piped up, defending her father. She winced as she took her turn and landed on one of Emily's properties. The other girl shot her a smug look as Paige had to hand over a wad of cash, twice the size of the one Josh had paid her.

"You are _so_ his daughter." Sara rolled her eyes playfully.  
"Damn straight she is." Nick grinned, every bit the doting father as he slung his arm around Paige. She made a show of shoving him off in disgust, but Emily could see how happy she was. The McCullers' might have been a somewhat unconventional family, but they were a happy one. Emily had always thought that Nick was something of a hard ass, but he'd clearly done a good job of raising his daughter on his own.

The game ended up lasting another couple of hours, long after Josh had called it a night and Sara had tucked him in to bed in the spare room. Nick ended up cleaning the three girls out; something he was all to happy to keep going on about. Modesty wasn't a McCullers family trait; neither was being a humble loser. Paige could only listen to him for so long. She dragged Emily upstairs to her room to get away from her dad's gloating. "He's going to be like that _all_ weekend." She groaned as she flopped down on to her bed. Emily followed suit. It made a change to the first time she'd been in Paige's room, when she'd been almost hesitant to even sit down on her bed.

"I can see where you get it from." Emily teased. "Remember last year, when you beat my personal best by like five seconds, and I didn't hear the end of it for a month!" She'd said it in a joking kind of way, but Paige's expression fell as she ducked her head bashfully.  
"I'm sorry I was such an ass to you. You were my biggest competition and, well you've seen how crazy my family is about winning."  
"Forget about it." Emily insisted. She scooted closer and tilted Paige's chin up so she was looking right at her. "I get it now. I do; besides, you being on my case only ever made me want to be faster."

Emily pulled her hand back and rested it under her chin as she propped herself up on her side. Paige kept her head up on her own as she offered the other girl a small smile. "I'm really glad we're friends now...and I'm glad you came over tonight."  
"Me too."  
"I hope your date didn't mind being stood up tonight?" Paige commented, subtly trying to fish for information on who Emily had been supposed to meet up with.  
"It wasn't a date!" Emily protested, and tossed a cushion at Paige for good measure. "And Samara will understand."

"Samara?" Paige sat bolt upright. The easy smile she'd been wearing as she'd caught the cushion had vanished from her face. The name wasn't exactly common place, and Rosewood wasn't the biggest of towns. Paige's voice was shaky as she continued. "As in _Samara Cook_?"  
"Do you know her?" Emily felt a lump forming in her throat. She took in the anxious look on Paige's face, and just knew she wasn't going to like the answer.

"You could say that." Paige cradled the cushion to her chest as she slumped forward with a frown. "Samara and I...we have history."  
"What kind of history?" Emily pressed; even though she had a good idea what was coming. Paige stared down at the floor, unable to meet her gaze. "Is she...is she the college girl you-"  
"Yes." Paige choked out, not letting the other girl finish. She had never imagined her night ending with talking about Samara Cook. "You should stay away from her, Em. She's not exactly the relationship type... I don't want to see you get hurt."

"What happened?" Emily refused to let it drop. "Did she hurt you?"  
"Leave it, Em. Please." Paige lay back down and rolled on to her back, staring forlornly up at the ceiling. She stiffened as she felt Emily's fingers lace through her own.  
"Paige, talk to me. Please don't keep shutting me out..."

"I met her two years ago. When she was a freshman at Hollis. My aunt was in her last year there, and I'd just come out. I used to hang around campus a lot. that's where I met Samara, at the LGBT group...she really helped me to come to terms with who I was; with what I wanted." Paige carried on staring up at the ceiling as she spoke in a low, even tone. She tightened her grip on Emily's hand before carrying on. "We got on great. We spent a lot of time together. She didn't know I'd only just turned sixteen...not until after that party; When Allison DiLaurentis walked in on us and she told her how old I was."

"Is that why things didn't work out between you two?" Emily probed. Paige shook her head. The truth was that she and Samara had grown closer than ever after they'd slept together, despite the two year age gap between them. They'd carried on seeing each other until Samara had asked for more. She'd wanted to be exclusive. She'd wanted Paige to be her girlfriend; she'd told her she'd loved her.

The admission had been a cold, sharp shock for the younger teen. Paige had _liked_ Samara. She really had. She'd liked her a lot, but she hadn't loved her back. There was no way she could have, not while she was still so hung up on the first girl to steal her heart. Paige had felt like a fraud then, like everything they'd shared had been a lie. She'd been the one to hurt Samara. _She'd_ been the one to end it between them, but Paige could hardly tell Emily that. It would just raise even more questions. Questions that Paige wasn't ready to answer.

"It just didn't work out." She decided to stick to a simpler version of the truth. Whether the explanation satisfied her or not, Emily at least allowed the subject to drop. She moved so that she was lying by Paige's side, and pressed her lips softly to the other girl's cheek.  
"I won't call her again." Emily promised, letting her lips linger for a moment before she pulled back. "It's late. I should-"

"Stay?" Paige asked, the desperation in her voice surprising her. "Please?"  
"Okay." Emily nodded and lay back down beside her. She wrapped her arms around Paige's waist, pulling her flush against her, so that their bodies almost seemed to mold in to one form Paige placed one of her hands over Emily's, lacing their fingers together again as she whispered out a 'thank you'. They lay like that for a while, silent and still, and both ignoring the elephant in the room; Paige wasn't sure how much longer she could carry on pretending like Emily was _just _a friend. She was pretty sure she was close to breaking down and admitting everything to the other Shark; especially when the pads of Emily's fingers were lazily drawing patterns against the inside of her palm. She closed her eyes over, thinking of how she would let all of her secrets pour out; and praying that Emily would still speak to her after she'd heard them. 

* * *

**A/N: As ever, thanks for reading and for the great comments people have been leaving. Paily might not be fully happening just yet, but I've got a few things that I need to get in before it does, to help set up some later chapters. I promise the wait won't be too much longer! **


	17. Chapter 17

"You're making breakfast?" Sara McCullers quizzed as she walked in to the kitchen and found her niece slaving over the stove. She was still in her pyjamas, a pair of old boxing shorts and a t-shirt advertising a roadside diner in California.  
"Pancakes...for Emily." Paige blushed and tucked her hair back behind her ear. "She stayed over last night."  
"Really? Your dad should start charging her rent." Sara teased. She'd had a good idea that Emily had stayed over when she hadn't heard her leaving the night before. The teenager's shoes still sitting in the hall were also a pretty big clue.

"Funny." Paige ignored her aunt's attempt at humour as she plated up Emily's breakfast. She put the plate of pancakes down on a tray, along with two steaming mugs of hot coffee.

"Here." Sara reached for one of the bulb vases that was sitting on the kitchen windowsill. There was a single pink rose sitting in it. Her brother was a keen gardener and often picked some of roses that he grew in his garden, to brighten up the kitchen. For all there had never been a woman living full time in the house, Nick had always been careful to keep it from turning in to some kind of bachelor pad.

"You don't think it's too much?" Paige chewed at her lip as she stared down at the little vase sitting on the breakfast tray.  
"Paige, a neon sign wouldn't be too much with you two!" She helped herself to a cup of coffee from the pot that Paige had brewed. "Seriously, get it together! A girl like Emily doesn't sit on the shelf for long."

"Tell me about it." Paige grumbled. She fussed over the rose in the vase, moving it to the other side of the tray and lining it up with the plate and the cup. She had a habit of becoming a little obsessive whenever she was nervous. "The girl she stood up so she could come here last night, it was Samara Cook."  
Shit..." Sara almost spat out her coffee. "Does she know about you two?"  
"I told her a little." Paige confessed with a half hearted shrug. "But not everything. She thinks Samara ended things."

"I still don't get why you called it off with her." Sara shook her head. She'd liked Samara. The two of them had spent some time together on campus, while she and Paige had been dating. "She was nuts about you-"  
"Emily." Paige interrupted her in a quiet, strained voice. "It's always been about Emily."  
"Oh, Paige..." Sara placed her coffee down, and moved to wrap her arms around her teenage niece. She'd known that Paige's 'crush' on her team mate went back a while, but she hadn't realised just how deep it ran. "_Tell her._" She instructed in a firm voice, before using the inch of height she had over her to plant a kiss to the top of Paige's head.

"I will." Paige muttered, without offering too much commitment. She picked up the tray and headed upstairs with it. Emily was still sleeping soundly by the time she got back to her room, which was exactly what Paige had wanted. She placed the tray down on her night stand before climbing back on to the bed. The mattress dipped slightly beneath her as she moved to Emily's side. She'd grown too warm and had kicked the covers away from her, leaving most of her perfect body on show.

Paige knew she shouldn't have been lying there just watching the other girl sleep, but she couldn't help herself. Emily's sun-kissed skin looked practically flawless in the morning light. She'd left her hair down to go to sleep, and her long dark locks were framing her peaceful face. Paige bit down on her lip as she thought about leaning over Emily's sleeping form, and pressing a gentle kiss to her lips to try and wake her. The longer she watched her, the stronger the impulse grew. She was almost grateful when Emily started to stir.

"Hey Princess, had enough beauty sleep?" Paige teased lightly as the other girl's eyes started to flicker open. Emily mumbled something unintelligible back to her and rolled forward, cuddling in to Paige's side and burying her face against her neck. "Come on, wake up! I've got you some coffee, and pancakes." Emily grumbled some more, but she at least started to sit up. She was wearing a camisole, allowing Paige an appreciative view of the taught muscles of her back as she stretched out.

"Wow..." Emily's face lit up as Paige presented her with the breakfast tray, rose included. All traces of sleep started to vanish from her face with her first sip of coffee. "This isgreat." Emily turned her head and pressed her lips to the side of Paige's cheek. She hadn't really thought about it before she'd done it. It had just felt natural; normal.  
"It's just coffee." Paige shrugged with a blush, trying to play it down.

She felt like she was about to burst with glee. Her cheek carried on tingling long after Emily's lips had left it. She wished she could make Emily breakfast every day. To wake up next to her every morning, and to see her face light up because of something Paige had said or done. She wanted to buy her flowers, and to hold her hand in public. She wanted Emily Fields full stop, and it was slowly driving her crazy.

"Em, about last night. When you were meeting Samara-"  
"It wasn't a date." Emily interrupted, misunderstanding which direction Paige had been heading in. "We were meeting for coffee, that's it...I'm not sure I'm even ready to date anybody right now." Paige had been ready to admit everything before Emily had opened her mouth. She'd been about to tell her just why she had ended things with Samara; why she could only ever go on one date with a girl before she was making excuses not to see them again. Her confession died in her throat as she forced a tight lipped smile in Emily's direction; she'd just shot Paige down without even realising it.

* * *

"Emily, hi."  
"Samara...hey." It had been too late for Emily to backtrack out of the Brew before Samara had spotted her; not to mention she was supposed to be starting work in twenty minutes. The blonde was sitting at a table by the door with a latte and a book. She waved Emily over as she moved her bag from the seat in front of her. It had been almost two weeks since Emily had stood her up, and she'd been dodging her ever since. "Sorry about the other night...something came up."

"So you said. I don't suppose you could join me for that coffee now, could you?" She was smiling brightly up at Emily as she made the offer, making the other girl squirm uncomfortably.  
"Samara, you seem really nice... but I don't think that's a good idea."  
"You know, Emily, I'm a big girl. If you weren't interested you didn't have to agree to meet me in the first place-"  
"That's not it! I _was_ interested, sort of...sorry." Emily apologised again. She felt her cheeks growing scarlet as she pulled out the chair and sat down. "The truth is, I found out you have history with a friend of mine. I don't think she'd be too happy if we...had coffee."

"Oh." Samara seemed intrigued. "And who's your friend?" Emily wasn't sure whether to answer or not. She didn't think Paige would appreciate her even talking to the blonde, not when she'd promised to stay away from her. On the other hand, Paige had seemed pretty choked up when she'd admitted dating Samara. Emily hadn't ruled out the possibility that the college girl was the one Paige was so hung up on.  
"Paige McCullers." She answered, deciding to be honest with her. Paige's name had an unexpected effect on the older girl. Her gaze dropped down to the table as she cradled her coffee cup in her hands. She looked winded, like Emily had just sucker punched her.

"I doubt she'd care." Samara replied dryly. Her tone was unexpectedly hostile. Emily got the feeling she'd just hit a nerve. Swallowing her pride, she tried to put Paige's needs first. "I wouldn't normally get involved, but I think Paige might still have feelings for you. I know you ended it but-"  
"What?" Samara frowned at the younger girl. She shook her head, her blonde curls bouncing around her shoulders. "Emily, I don't know what you've been told, but I didn't end anything. Paige did."

Seeing the look of confusion on Emily's face, the blonde sighed. "I met Paige at Hollis in my freshman year. I thought she was a freshman too...I think I was taken with her from the moment I first laid eyes on her. I don't usually get attached so easily, but Paige was different...special." Emily could agree with that, even if she had only recently started to see it.

"We danced around each other for weeks, before we finally got together at a party. After that we were, I guess you could call it dating, for a few months. Until I told Paige that I was in love with her...That's when she ended it." It was Emily's turn to drop her gaze. Paige had lied to her. "Oh, she was all apologetic about it. Well, you know Paige..." Samara managed a weak smile, clearly thinking back to happier times.

"She said she was sorry, but she was in love with someone else. I was mad as hell at the time, but I suppose I get it." Samara shrugged. "First love and all that. I guess we're all still holding a candle for that first girl that made us feel something. Am I right?"  
"She'd dead." Emily surprised them both with her answer. She seldom spoke about Allison. "The first girl I thought I loved...she died."

"I'm so sorry." Samara reached over the table to place her hand over Emily's. Her timing was terrible. The door slammed shut behind Paige as she stormed out, having walked in to find the other two girls holding hands. Emily felt her stomach drop as she realised what it looked like. She jumped to her feet so fast that she almost knocked her chair over. Samara flashed her an apologetic look as Emily chased after the other girl.

Paige was nowhere to be seen when Emily hit the street. She looked up and down, trying to figure out where she had went. "Damn it..." Emily had seen the look of betrayal on Paige's face before she'd ran off. Emily had promised to stay away from Samara. She could only imagine what Paige had thought when she'd seen them together.

She tried to call her, but Paige's phone went straight through to her voice-mail. "Paige, it wasn't what you think! I didn't even know she was going to be there...can you please just call me back, or come back to the Brew. I'm working till six..." Emily hung up and headed back inside. Samara was packing up her things as she walked in.

"I'm sorry if I got you in trouble." The blonde got to her feet to apologise. She pulled the strap of her messenger bag on over her shoulder. "Did you catch up to Paige?"  
"No." Emily sighed. "I'll call by her house after work, straighten it all out." There was a lot to straighten; like why Paige had lied about Samara being the one to end things. If she wasn't still holding a flame for her first girlfriend, then who was this girl that she'd been hung up on for years?

"I hope you can work it out. Tell Paige...tell her I said hi." It looked like Paige wasn't the only one clinging on to old feelings. Emily said that she would, but she forgot all about her promise within an hour. Her thoughts were fixed squarely on Paige.

She tried calling her a few more times during her shift, but Paige didn't answer. The Brew was filling up for the evening rush by the time Emily's replacement came in to let her go. She managed to grab a table by the window, and hung around to see if Paige would show up to meet her. The McCullers who eventually came bursting through the door wasn't the one she was expecting though.

Sara was wide eyed and close to frantic as she rushed over to Emily's table. "Em, is Paige with you? I've been calling her for an hour, but she isn't answering."  
"No. She came by earlier, but we...she looked like she was dressed to go running." Emily didn't want to have to explain everything to Paige's aunt. She looked to be in a rush. She kept checking over her shoulder, at her car sitting outside. The boys were strapped in to their car seats and looked like they were dressed in their pyjamas. "What's going on?"

"Allan, Paige's grandfather, he's taken a turn for the worst. Nick's with him now, but I need to find Paige. I've got the boys with me. Nathan's due a feed. Their deadbeat father isn't taking my calls..." Sara shook her head. She was stressed to the hilt.

"I can take them?" Emily suggested, wanting to help. She would have offered to help find Paige, but she figured Sara knew her better and had more chance of finding her quicker.  
"You're a godsend, Emily! I'll give you my key for Nick's house. I'll come right back as soon I've found Paige and dropped her off at the hospital."  
"Take my car." Emily offered up her keys and swapped them with Sara. "It'll save you disturbing the boys."

Emily drove Sara's car over to the McCullers house. Josh had a million questions for her on the way. He was clued in for a seven year old, and he knew something was going on. "Your mom and your uncle Nick are going to see Paige's grandfather. He's an old man and he's lonely, so they're going to see him." Emily wasn't very good at lying, even to children. Josh screwed up his face as he stared up at her from the back seat. He looked like he was about to ask another question when Emily interrupted him. "Who wants ice cream?"

Her distraction tactics worked a treat. Josh fell silent as soon as he was sitting in front of the TV with a bowl of ice cream. Emily fed the baby while the older boy watched cartoons. Once Nathan was settled, she put him in his cot, upstairs in the spare room, and switched on his baby monitor. Josh took a little longer to wind down. It was after ten before he finally crashed out. Emily carried him upstairs and put him to bed too. Not long after that, Sara got in touch. She sounded tired, her voice coming out thick and strained. "I found Paige. She's at the hospital with me now... It's not looking good. I've called my mom, she's coming up from Scranton to watch the boys. She'll be another hour or so... I'm sorry about this Emily, I just don't want to leave Paige on her own."

"I could stay." Emily suggested. She moved down the hall towards Paige's room. The plush carpet was soft beneath her bare feet. "The boys are both sleeping anyway, and I've called my mom."  
"That would be great, Em. I really appreciate it." Sara sighed from the other end of the line. "I'm sure Paige will too. You've been a real rock for her this last month." Emily wasn't so sure she'd agree. Paige had looked devastated when she'd seen Emily and Samara together at the coffee shop.  
"Can you tell her...tell her I'm thinking about her?" Emily dropped down on to Paige's bed, wishing she could be there with her now. She hung up the phone and curled up with Paige's pillow.

It was after two in the morning when Emily's car pulled up in the drive. It was followed by Nick's SUV. Paige climbed out of it and shook off her father's hand as he tried to take hold of her shoulder. "I'm going to bed." She was bleary eyed as she kicked off her running shoes at the bottom of the stairs. By the time she reached the top she'd shrugged off her jacket. She didn't bother switching on the light as she stepped in to her room and stripped out of the rest of her clothes. She pulled on an oversized t-shirt and headed for her bed.

Paige paused as she caught sight of the familiar shape under the covers. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she remembered Sara saying that Emily was taking care of the kids. There had been too much going on for Paige to really think about the other girl; or the fact that she would still be there when she got home.

Paige pulled back the covers and slipped in to bed beside her. It was cold outside and Emily was radiating heat like a hot water bottle. Paige moved in closer, wrapping her arm around the other girl's waist; like she'd done so many times before. She choked back a sob as she buried her face in one of the pillows. "Paige?" Emily had been sleeping lightly. She turned over to find Paige curled up behind her. Her eyes were red raw and her cheeks were stained with tears. Emily didn't need to ask what had happened.

She moved so that she was cradling the other girl against her chest. Her hand slipped under Paige's shirt as she began rubbing small circles on to the skin of her back. "It's okay." She soothed, her lips pressing against the top of Paige's forehead. "It's going to be okay..." Paige wasn't listening to her. She was too busy tilting her head back and reaching up for Emily's lips.

Her grandfather had just died, and all Paige could feel was an overwhelming sadness. She wanted to feel something else; anything else. Emily's eyes widened as Paige kissed her. It was unexpected, but not altogether unpleasant. The other girl's lips moved slowly at first, but her actions soon turned desperate as she sat up, pushing Emily back down against the mattress. "Paige, wait-" Emily tried to turn her head, but Paige's lips followed her. She was insistent as she carried on trying to kiss her. "Paige! Stop! You're upset..." Emily pushed her back and sat up, holding out a hand to stop Paige from reaching for her again.

They were both breathing hard as they stared each other down. Paige was the first to falter. Her eyes began to fill up again, and a strangled whimper escaped her lips. Emily's resolve slipped away as she pulled the grieving girl in close. She lay them both back down, wrapping herself tightly around Paige and pressing a kiss to her damp cheek. "It's okay." Emily repeated in a soft whisper. "It's okay. I've got you."


	18. Chapter 18

"I'm worried about her, Sara!" Nick threw his arms up in the air in exasperation as his sister snatched the house phone out of his hands. "She's not eating, she's not sleeping...she needs help!"  
"She's grieving, Nick! She needs our support, not a doctor and a handful of pills!" Sara shook her head in disbelief as she sat the phone down on the kitchen counter.

"She's my kid! I can't just stand back and watch her hurting-" He fell abruptly silent as he spotted Paige at the bottom of the stairs. She was dressed for the first time in days, and had her backpack slung over one shoulder. "Hey Kiddo, I thought we agreed you were going to give school a miss for the rest of the week?"  
"You agreed. I'm going to school...that is, if you two are done talking about me?"

"How about I give you a ride to school?" Nick tried plastering a patient smile over his face, but the cracks in his demeanour were plain to see. He'd had about as much sleep as his daughter over the last few days. He was worrying himself sick about her. He didn't want Paige going to school, not in her state.

Nick McCullers had made his money by being able to talk people in and out of things; Paige had no doubt that he'd probably be able to talk her in to staying home before he'd even have to pull his car out of the drive.

The sound of a car horn came from outside just at the right moment. Paige almost managed a smile. "I've got it covered, thanks." She kissed her father's cheek and headed out the front door. Emily was waiting for her in her car. She'd been surprised to hear from Paige the night before, asking her to pick her up for school. It had been almost a week since Paige's grandfather had passed away and Emily had barely heard a word from her. The other girl looked like she hadn't slept since the night she'd climbed in to bed with Emily and tried to kiss her; and she'd tossed and turned for most of that night too.

Her eyes were dull and watery, framed by heavy dark circles that she hadn't bothered to try and cover with make-up. Her hair was tied back, but not braided like usual. It looked like she'd just thrown on the first clothes she'd laid her hands on; a pair of ripped jeans and a hockey jersey. "How've you been?" Emily knew it was a stupid question, but it was all she had.

"I've been better." Paige shrugged, her gaze fixed out the window. "Thanks for coming to pick me up. Dad didn't want me going back to school yet."  
"Are you sure it's a good idea?" Emily asked. She was trying to tread lightly; Paige looked like a strong breeze could knock her over.  
"No, I'm not...but there's only so long that I can lie in bed and cry." Paige answered honestly.

"I'm sorry." Emily stopped the car at a set of lights and reached over to offer the other girl a hug. They hadn't spoken about the other night, but then Emily had figured Paige already had enough on her mind without bringing it up. The grieving girl began to sob as she hugged Emily back, burying her face against her shoulder as the light turned green. "Okay, I'm taking you back home." Emily made an executive decision. There was no way Paige would make it through first period without breaking down. She kept an arm wrapped around her as she turned the car back around; Paige didn't put up a fight.

Nick and Sara were still talking in the kitchen when the two girls walked back in to the house. Paige slipped off her backpack and let it drop by the door. After that, she slunk off up the stairs. Nick made a move to follow after her, but Sara held him back as Emily started walking towards the kitchen. "Mr McCullers, would it be okay if I stayed here with Paige today?"

"That would be fine, Emily. I'd actually appreciate it. Just make sure you square it with your mom first" Emily said she would and headed upstairs to check on Paige. She found her lying curled up on her bed. The curtains were drawn closed, blocking out any potential light. Emily pulled off her jacket and kicked off her shoes, before climbing on to the bed. She moved so that she was cradling Paige's head in her lap.

She pulled out Paige's pony tail and began slowly running her fingers through her hair, separating it out. They lay there in an easy silence for a while, until Paige finally spoke again. "The funeral's tomorrow..." Emily had no idea what to say to that, so she just carried on stroking her hair. "I don't know if I can cope."  
"I'm here for you. Whatever you need."

"Would you come with me?" Paige sat up, her eyes wide and pleading as she asked Emily to go with her. She seemed to second guess herself a moment later. "Sorry, I shouldn't have asked-"  
"Like I said, whatever you need."

* * *

"Does this look okay?" Emily smoothed her hands down the sides of the black dress she was wearing. It was sleeveless, with a respectable neckline, and a hem that finished just above her knees. The last time she'd worn it had been for her best friend's funeral. The thought left a solid lump in her throat.  
"You look fine, honey." Pam came up behind her and helped Emily put her hair up in to an elegant bun. After that, she placed her hands on her daughter's shoulders. "You're doing a very nice thing for your friend. Give Paige my love."  
"I will." Emily glanced down at her watch. The funeral service wasn't due to start for another half hour, but she'd promised to meet Paige at the church beforehand.

Nick was on the door when she arrived. He was greeting the mourners as they filed in to the church. He directed Emily down to the front pew, where Paige was sitting staring at her grandfather's closed casket. Emily sat down beside her and took hold of her hand. Sara was sitting on the other side of Paige. She shot her niece's friend a grateful smile.

Just before the service was about to start, Nick made his way down to the front and sat down between his sister and daughter. He turned to Paige and whispered something in her ear. Her head shot up as she looked back over her shoulder, her eyes wide with something Emily couldn't quite distinguish. She followed where she was looking and spotted a middle-aged woman making her way towards the front. She was immaculately dressed in a black pant suit, with her long brown hair tied back in a neat plait. Even from afar, Emily picked up on the familiar button nose and full lips of the woman's face.

Paige scowled at her mother's back as she shook hands with the priest leading the service. Her grip on Emily's hand tightened as she watched her take a seat on the other side of the church. Paige's mom didn't look much like a junkie to Emily. The woman seemed pretty clean cut, like the type of person you'd expect to see at a church social. It wasn't exactly surprising that she'd turned up for her own father's funeral, but Paige still seemed shocked to see her. Emily wondered how long it had been since the other girl had last seen her mother.

The funeral seemed to drag on forever. Emily's fingers started to feel numb from Paige holding on to her hand so tightly. She never let go though. Not once. She was by Paige's side the whole time, so she was there when her mother approached her. Nick was talking to a group of elderly mourners by the cemetery gates, and Sara had gone to call the sitter who was looking after the boys.

"Hi Paigey." Her mom greeted her with a warm smile. She was met with a frosty reception as Paige glared at her.  
"Nobody calls me that, _Claire._"  
"What happened to 'mom'?" Claire McCullers scoffed. She and Paige's father had divorced years earlier, but she'd kept his name on; mostly just to annoy Nick.  
"I think you lost the right to be called that the last time you walked out on me and Dad." Paige shot back defiantly.

Her mom had walked in and out of her life more times than Paige cared to remember. The last time she'd left, Paige had been thirteen; she'd made her father swear that he wouldn't take her back. "Just get lost, Claire. Nobody wants you here..."  
"Paige-"

"You heard her." Emily stepped up between Paige and her mom, trying to square up to the slightly taller woman. "She doesn't want you here." She was still holding Paige's hand and she could feel her shaking behind her.  
"Claire, a word!" Nick hissed as he caught hold of his ex wife's arm. He'd spotted her trying to talk to their daughter and had rushed right over. He led her away with a firm grip as Emily saw to Paige. She was still shaking as they walked towards the car.

They ended up back at the house for the wake; where Paige had to do her duty and mingle with her late-grandfather's friends. Her father didn't mention what had happened to her mother, and Paige didn't ask. She was just glad she hadn't shown up for the wake. "God, I'm so sick of these people." Paige groaned in frustration as she flopped down on to her bed. She covered her face with her hands as Emily dropped down beside her.  
"It's almost over. Just a couple more hours."

"I just want to change out of this dress, put on my running shoes and get the hell out of here." Paige sighed in frustration. She felt like the walls were closing in on her, and she couldn't wait to get out. Running was her way of letting off steam, even if she felt completely run down from days of surviving on so little sleep.  
"We could just stay up here? I'm sure your dad won't mind. You've had a long day."

"You haven't asked me about her... My mom."  
"I figured you'd talk about it when you were ready." Emily shrugged. She hated seeing the other girl so broken. She hadn't wanted to make it worse by prying in to the stuff with her mom.

"I haven't seen her in over four years. She wrote me, but I never wrote back... There are only so many times you can hear that your mom's in rehab." Emily couldn't begin to imagine what it would be like growing up without either of her parents. Her dad had been away a lot with the army when she'd been growing up, but he'd always been a phone call away; and growing up, her mom had practically been the centre of her universe.

"Did you know she was coming?" Emily asked, figuring Paige obviously needed to talk to someone about it all.  
"Dad called her, but we weren't sure if she'd actually show up. She can be a little flaky like that." Paige answered dryly. She picked herself up off the bed and slipped out of her dress. She'd undressed in front of Emily a million times, so it wasn't like it was a big deal as she changed in to some more comfortable clothes. "Do you want some sweatpants or something?"

"Sure. I feel a little overdressed now." Emily joked as she took the clothes Paige offered her.  
"You look nice." Paige managed a weak smile. "Your hair looks different, it's... nice."  
"Thanks...I kind of feel like my mom." Emily blushed as she pulled the bun out. She teased her fingers through her hair, letting it fall down around her shoulders.

Paige looked down at the ground, averting her gaze from the other girl as she said, "You don't have to stay you know. I'll be okay on my own." The last thing she wanted was for Emily to leave, but she didn't want her feeling like she had to be there to babysit her. "I'm tired. I'll probably just go to sleep anyway."  
"Why don't I spend the night? That way we can wake up early and go running?" Emily suggested. She wanted to stay just as much as Paige wanted her to.

"You hate running, and it's barely seven o'clock. There's no way you're tired." Paige challenged. She knew she should just kept her mouth shut and accept the offer, but she didn't want Emily staying out of some misguided sense of pity for her.  
"Probably not, but I'm still staying. We can put on a movie, climb in to bed and you can fall asleep when you're tired. I already told my mom not to expect me back tonight."

"You're pretty confident about getting in to my bed." Paige joked, sounding a bit more like her usual self. Emily took it as a good sign. She made a show of pulling back the covers and planting herself right in to the middle of Paige's double bed.  
"Like you'd kick me out."  
"Pretty unlikely." Paige had to agree with her. She switched off the light before she followed suit and climbed in to bed.

After a bit of shuffling about, they were lying curled up together. Paige had her head resting on Emily's chest while the other swimmer stroked her hair. "I love it when you do that." Paige bit down on her lip as the confession slipped out. She'd meant to say it in her head, not out loud. She stiffened, expecting Emily to stop or pull away; but she didn't.  
"It's the only time you stay still for more than five seconds." Emily teased.

The other girl was constantly active, she always seemed to be on the move. Even when she was sitting in class, she would grow restless and start to fidget. "Em?"  
"Yeah?" Emily looked down at the same time as Paige lifted her head up. Their faces were so close that their noses were touching; neither girl pulled away.

Paige tilted her head, just slightly brushing their lips together. The kiss was tentative and cautious, a complete contrast to the desperate way Paige had last tried to kiss her. Emily acted with the same kind of caution, slowly moving her lips as she started to kiss back. It had damn near killed her to stop Paige from kissing her the first time; Emily didn't have it in her to say no twice.


	19. Chapter 19

"Sorry I've got to bail. I'll see you tonight?" Paige hovered nervously by the counter in the Brew. It was Saturday morning, and Emily was halfway through her shift. Paige had helped her open up, and she'd stuck around for a couple of hours afterwards. Emily's friends had come in later in the morning, and joined Paige at her table.  
"You will. Seven o'clock." Emily smiled as she leant over to hug her goodbye.

It had been a few days since Paige had buried her grandfather. She was still in a slump, but Emily had talked her in to keeping up her usual Saturday morning routine. Getting out of the house seemed to have done her the world of good. Emily just hoped the other girl would make it through her aunt's birthday night out. Sara had invited Emily along too, so she had to be at the McCullers house for seven.

"Great. Don't forget your sleeping stuff. I can't afford to lose any more of my clothes to you." Paige teased.  
"I'll bring your stuff over tonight... Except for your Penguins hoodie, I'm keeping that one."  
"Fine." Paige held up her hands in mock surrender, before shooting the other girl a wink. "But you've got to let me take you to game sometime."

"What is with those two anyway? They're like an old married couple." Spencer shook her head as she sat watching the two girls from across the Brew.  
"Yeah, except without the sex." Hanna piped up with a smirk. Aria rolled her eyes at the both of them.  
"Seriously. I'm not exactly Team Paige, but they've been joined at the hip for weeks. It's the happiest I've seen Em in a long time... Why haven't they just gotten together already?" Spencer demanded. All Emily seemed to talk about anymore was her fellow Shark.

"They kissed the other night, when Paige was upset about her grandfather. Emily told me about it. They haven't talked about it though. Emily's afraid of pushing her in to something while she's so upset." Hanna shrugged, giving the other girls the scoop on what was happening between Paige and their friend.  
"That's crazy! Paige has been making goo-goo eyes at Em for years. I highly doubt Emily would be _pushing_ Paige in to anything." Spencer pointed out.

"What are you talking about?" Hanna frowned, not quite following her.  
"Come on, Hanna! The way Paige is with Emily? It's the equivalent of a fourth grader pulling a girl's hair!"

"Maybe we shouldn't get involved. Let's just keep out of it, okay?" Aria suggested, trying to be the voice of reason. She didn't think Emily would appreciate her friends meddling in her love life.  
"No. We _should _get involved!" Hanna protested with a grin. "They're totally in to each other. I say we give them a week and then just start bashing their heads together until they see sense."  
"Agreed." Spencer held up her hand for a high five from the blonde; while Aria looked on in despair.

* * *

"Em, will you hurry up and get dressed already? It's like a quarter to seven!" Hanna hollered at Emily's open closet door. She was standing behind it, pulling on her dress.  
"Almost ready." Emily called back. She was nervous about what she planned to wear, so she'd invited Hanna over for a second opinion. She fluffed at her hair before stepping out from behind the closet door. "Okay, what do you think?"

"Damn, Em! Forget Paige, _I'll _show you a good time!" Hanna grinned as Emily gave her a twirl. The toga style dress she was wearing was a deep purple colour, with a plunging neck and a hemline that stopped halfway down her thighs. She was wearing matching heels, accentuating her long legs and adding a couple of inches to her height. Her hair was down and curled, and she'd gone a little heavier on her eye make-up; giving her a sexy, smouldering look.

"Who said it's for Paige?" She argued as she preened at her hair in front of the mirror.  
"Well it's hardly for her dad, is it?" Hanna snorted. "Paige is going to short circuit when she sees you!"  
"You really think so?" Emily was grinning as she turned around to face the blonde sitting on her bed.  
"I know so! Come on Cinderella, let's get you to the ball!" Hanna jumped to her feet and started dragging Emily towards the door. She barely had time to grab her purse on the way out.

Hanna drove her over to Paige's house, to save Emily from having to drive her car over. They were supposed to be going out in the city to celebrate Sara's twenty-sixth birthday, so Emily doubted she'd be in any fit state to drive the next morning. They were starting the night at the McCullers house, since Nick was looking after the boys at Sara's apartment. Emily manoeuvred the gravel drive carefully in her heels. She was only a few minutes late, but the party sounded like it was already in full swing.

Emily knocked on the door and waited for an answer. Paige was the one to open the door a few moments later. Her eyes widened at the sight of the other girl in her dress. She froze in the doorway, openly gawking at Emily. Sara came up behind her niece with a smirk. "Paige, it's not polite to leave guests standing on the porch."  
"Huh? Oh, yeah. Sorry." she stepped aside, offering Emily a sheepish smile.

Emily stepped inside, biting back a smirk of her own as she gave Sara a hug and wished her a happy birthday. "Thanks. You look great by the way. Doesn't she, Paige?"  
"Yeah. She does." Paige choked out, her eyes still fixed on Emily's dress. The other girl had also scrubbed up pretty well. She was wearing a strapless, midnight blue dress, that stopped just above her knees.  
"Thanks. You look nice too."

Paige was still blushing as she followed Emily and Sara in to the living room. She picked up a glass of wine from the tray sitting on the coffee table and handed it to Emily, her arm automatically finding it's way around the other girl's waist. It had become something of a habit for them to always be touching; it was just one of the many things they didn't talk about. 'Don't ask, don't tell' was practically their slogan.

Sara introduced Emily to her friends. There were half a dozen of them littered around the living room. Most of them were friends from college, or from the bank Sara worked at part-time. Emily sipped at her wine as she greeted the room full of strangers, grateful for Paige's hand at the small of her back. It didn't go unnoticed by one of Sara's friends.

"Well aren't you two just the cutest couple?" A brunette with a thick southern accent exclaimed brightly. Emily felt her cheeks burning as Paige pulled her hand away. The other girl was the first one to speak up.  
"We're not a couple." Paige sounded defensive as she took a step back. She found an excuse to walk off in to the kitchen as Emily pursed her lips.

Emily was still smarting about the comment an hour later, when they were getting ready to leave for the city. Paige had kept up a respectable distance; fighting the urge to take Emily's hand, or slip an arm around her waist, in front of the others. Emily was on to her second glass of wine, and starting to feel the effects. She'd made friends with a couple of the women at the party. One of them was a nurse at Rosewood General, and some of her stories had Emily in stitches. She was busy laughing at one when Sara came up to her with a driving license in her hand.

"Hey Em, we figured Diane's license would be the closest fit for you." She offered the plastic license out for Emily to take, but she politely refused it.  
"Oh, I've got it covered." She pulled out the fake license that was one of the ones Allison had gotten for them all a couple of years earlier. They'd been going to a college party, and had needed to lie about their ages to get in.

"Nice." Sara scrutinised the license with an appreciative nod. "Looks like it's just Paige we need to sneak in through the fire door. I'm such a responsible aunt, sneaking my seventeen year old niece in to clubs."  
"You're only seventeen?" Emily was surprised. She'd thought Paige was already eighteen, like her.

"I'm one of the youngest in the year. I turn eighteen in two months." Paige shrugged indifferently. She would still be eighteen before graduation.  
"Aw, you're only a baby!" Emily teased, her mood lightening as she finished off her wine. Paige's defence was childish. She stuck her tongue out in Emily's direction with a smirk. Emily laughed it off as she moved in closer, letting her hand brush against Paige's; she took it without a second thought.

The club they ended up at was in the warehouse district of Philadelphia. Emily and Paige sailed past the doormen with their fake ID and joined the others inside. It was absolutely packed. Paige kept a tight grip on Emily's hand, making sure she was pressed up right behind her as she steered her towards the bar. The group of women managed to grab a booth at the back of the club, but most of them spent the night on the dance floor. Emily was dancing with the nurse she'd made friends with, when Paige cut in.

"So what did I do?" Paige shouted in the other girl's ear, trying her best to be heard over the roar of the music. Emily frowned as she held her hands up. She either hadn't heard, or didn't know what she was talking about. Paige leant in a little closer, her body pressing right up against Emily's side. "You're wearing your 'Paige-is-an-ass look'. What did I do?"  
"I don't have a look like that!" Emily protested. She tried to pull away, to carry on dancing with the others. Paige was having none of it. She pulled her aside, towards a concrete pillar, and backed Emily up against it.  
"Yes. You do." She was standing so close that her lips brushed against Emily's ear as she spoke. "And it breaks my heart every time I see it."

Emily felt a fluttering in her stomach as she turned her head to catch Paige's cheek with her lips. "I don't have a look like that."  
"Em..." Paige let out a shaky breath as her hands found the other girl's waist.  
"Looking good, ladies!" The two girls were interrupted by a guy in a cheap silk shirt. He had a dated haircut and cheap cologne. Along with the two guys with him, he looked like a reject from a 90s boy band. "Can we buy you lovely girls a drink?"

"No. You can't." Paige moved protectively, covering Emily from their leering gazes. Her dad had only agreed to letting her go out on the understanding that she not leave her drink unattended, or accept any from strangers. Paige had heard enough horror stories from the city to know it was sound advice.  
"Oh, don't be like that honey!" One of the other men moved in, trying to tug on Paige's arm. "Come dance with me. My buddies here will keep your friend company-" She pushed him away with a sharp shove.

"She's not my friend, she's my girlfriend! And if you and your buddies go near her, I'll drop the three of you!" Paige was outnumbered, and less than half the size of the smallest guy, but something in her tone and her expression had the three losers backing off. They quickly moved on to an easier group of girls nearby.

"So _now _I'm your girlfriend." Emily challenged with her arms folded against her chest. A light went off in Paige's head as she realised why the other girl had been so cold with her earlier.  
"You're mad about what I said back at the house?" Paige laughed. "Em, we're _not _together. I know the rumours going around school; I figured you might be uncomfortable if I didn't set the record straight with Sara's friends..."  
"Forget it. It's nothing." Emily shrugged off her concerned expression, along with her hand on her shoulder.

"Wait!" Paige pulled her back as she tried to walk off to rejoin the others. She wrapped her arms around her waist, pinning Emily up against her. "What if I asked you to be?" Paige growled in her ear. Emily's eyes closed over of their own volition. She covered Paige's hands with her own.

"Asked me to what?" She asked, playing dumb. She'd refused to chase after Paige when she'd first realised how she felt about her. At first it had been about her pride; Paige had a reputation for breaking girls' hearts, and Emily didn't want to add to that ego. Once she'd found out the truth about Paige's serial dating, she'd been even more reluctant to make the first move. Paige asking _her _out would prove she was serious.

"You know what." Paige murmured in her ear, before moving her lips to her neck. Emily bit back a moan as the other girl's lips found the sensitive pulse point in her neck. Paige's arms were still wrapped around her, and they were moving in time to the music. The two girls were so lost in each other that they failed to notice Sara and the others watching them from across the crowded club.

"I thought they weren't dating?" Asked the brunette who'd mistaken them for a couple back at the house. Sara shook her head with a knowing smile.  
"They've been dating for weeks; they just didn't know it!"

The rest of the night passed in a blur of shots and cocktails. Paige and Emily rejoined the others, but they never left each other's side. It was close to four in the morning before they got back to Rosewood and stumbled through Paige's front door. A couple of Sara's friends had come back with them and wanted to carry on the party. Emily was exhausted though, she brought her chin to rest on Paige's shoulder and sighed in her ear. "Let's go to bed."

Paige didn't need to be asked twice. She said goodnight to the others as she took hold of Emily's hand and led her upstairs. They changed in silence and climbed in to Paige's bed. Despite what had happened in the club, things hadn't gone any further between them. They always seemed to reach an impassible stalemate whenever either of them started something; like they were both afraid to be the one to take a chance and risk being rejected.

"Goodnight, Em." Paige mumbled as she moved in closer, her lips pressing against the back of the other girl's neck. One of her arms was already draped across Emily. Her bed-shirt had risen up and Paige's fingers were idly stroking the exposed patch of flesh just above the waistband of her shorts.  
"Night." Emily breathed out heavily. She'd drank a little too much, and the room was stiflingly hot; she didn't dare to move away though.

She was all too aware of every place that Paige's body was pressed up behind her. The alcohol coursing through her system was making her feel sluggish and tired, but Paige's deft fingers, trailing slow circles on her skin, were like a pure shot of adrenaline. There was no was Emily could just fall asleep.

It was impossible for her to switch off when it felt like Paige was touching her everywhere at once. She was lying so close that her lips were still resting at the base of Emily's neck. Her fingers flexed out, grazing against her hip and dipping ever so slightly below the waistband of her shorts.

Emily bit back the soft moan that threatened to spill from her lips. She wasn't sure whether Paige was aware of the effect her actions were having on her or not, but Emily's body was responding all the same. "Paige?" She choked out, her eyes closing over as her tongue darted out across her lips.  
"Hmm?" Paige's breath tickled against Emily's neck as she replied.  
"When did you know you were gay?"

It had been the last question the other girl had been expecting, and it took her a minute to answer. The seconds seemed to drag by as Emily waited in the dark for an answer. All the while, Paige's fingers were relentlessly drawing patterns on her stomach. "Why does it matter?" She sighed against Emily's ear, her mouth having moved without the other girl noticing.

"Because I think you're still hung up on that girl, and I'm worried that if this goes any further..." Emily answered honestly. Her eyes closed over again as the other girl's lips found their way to the side of her neck.  
"I told you, it doesn't matter..." Paige answered her in a soft growl. She planted a slow trail of very deliberate kisses all the way down to her collarbone. Emily had to fight the urge to turn over and face her; she wasn't quite sure where that would lead them.

"It matters to me." Emily insisted. She wasn't about to let it drop. The only way she could let anything happen between them was if she was sure Paige really wanted it to. Emily couldn't bear the thought of letting herself get any closer to Paige, not if she could end up losing her to some other girl.

"Em, don't make me tell you. It's not important. I swear...you're the only person I'm interested in." The regret in Paige's voice was plain to hear, and the hand at Emily's stomach grew suddenly still. Emily covered it with both of her own. She was about to suggest that she should go sleep downstairs, when Paige pulled her back flush against her again.

She couldn't tell Emily the truth. She couldn't admit that she'd been in love with her since she was fourteen years old. Paige had hidden the truth for so long that she'd convinced herself she could never say the words out loud. "You...it's always been you." She answered, her voice a deep husk in Emily's ear. Paige expected her to recoil at the revelation, to pull away as she realised just how deep Paige's feelings towards her ran. Emily surprised her as she turned over and caught the other girl's lips in a crushing kiss. Paige's eyes widened for a moment. Her surprise didn't last long though. She quickly regained the upper hand, by moving so that she was lying over her, with Emily's back pressed flat against the mattress.

The kiss they were locked in was deliberate and urgent, their lips moving like they only had seconds left to live. Emily's arms wrapped around Paige's neck, pulling her in closer. Paige felt light-headed as the other girl's tongue slipped past her lips, deepening the kiss. She was practically having heart palpitations as she took in the sweet taste of Emily's lips; she tasted of lip-gloss and cocktails.

Needing to satisfy her curiosity about what the rest of her would taste like, Paige's lips moved to the hollow of her throat. Her tongue darted out, before her teeth nipped playfully at Emily's collarbone. The other girl let out a soft moan that had Paige's toes curling. She wanted to hear it again, so she found the pulse point in Emily's neck and took the sensitive skin between her lips.

"Paige!" Emily gasped. She grabbed at the back of her head, her fingers tangling almost painfully in the other girl's hair. She didn't try and pull her lips away though; if anything, she was pushing her mouth even harder against the side of her neck. Paige didn't need much encouragement. She had imagined kissing Emily time and time again, but her fantasies paled in comparison to the real thing. She wanted to explore every inch of the other girl with her mouth;

As drunk as she was, Paige knew that trying to take things too far would be a mistake. Emily had been drinking too, and the last thing she wanted was for either of them to wake up and regret anything that had happened. Paige forced herself to slow down. She clenched the bedsheets with her fists, in an attempt to stop her hands from going anywhere they shouldn't.

"God, you're perfect..." Paige sighed in astonishment. She pulled back to marvel at the beauty lying beneath her. Emily's silky curls were splayed over her pillow. Her soft lips were full and swollen from the bruising kiss that they had just shared. Her glazed over eyes were staring back up at Paige with a mixture of desire and apprehension.  
"I'm really not..." Emily tried to duck her head bashfully, but Paige refused to let her get away with it. She tilted Emily's chin back as she leant down to kiss her again.  
"Yes, you are."


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Sorry I haven't updated much this week, I've been working on a few things and I got a little stuck with this chapter. As ever, thanks for reading and for the awesome feedback!**

* * *

Emily opened her eyes with a groan, and then closed them again as she rolled on to her front. She reached out with her arm, searching for the warm body that should have been lying next to her. She frowned as she came up empty. Paige wasn't beside her anymore. Emily felt a rush of panic as she sat up and looked around the room. There was no sign of Paige, and nothing to tell Emily how long she had been gone; Paige's side of the bed was stone cold. Emily kicked the covers away and clambered to her feet. She felt a rush of dizziness as she steadied herself. It was already late in the morning, but the curtains were drawn closed, blocking any light from getting in to the room. Moving slowly, Emily made her way towards the door. She could hear voices coming from downstairs. She just hoped one of them belonged to Paige.

"Morning Em." Sara greeted her with a tired smile. She was hunched over the breakfast bar, nursing a cup of coffee. A couple of her friends had spent the night too, and they all looked worse for wear. Emily imagined she probably looked the same.  
"Morning." She ran her fingers through her hair as she took a seat beside Sara. Emily had the worst hangover of her life, but she couldn't even wallow in self pity over it; she was too busy worrying about things between her and Paige. The other girl's disappearing act had Emily on edge. They'd both said a lot of things the night before, but Emily was worried that Paige's feelings might have changed once she'd sobered up.

"Is Paige still sleeping? She _must _be hungover." Sara snorted with laughter. Her niece was an early bird, she rarely slept in past eight; unless Emily was staying over of course. That tended to be the exception to her morning routine. Emily felt her stomach drop as she realised Paige must have been gone for a while if her aunt hadn't seen her go out. She was thinking of an excuse to leave as the back door opened and Paige walked in. She was wearing her running gear, and her hair was tied back in a messy plait. Her cheeks were rosy and her skin was covered in a light sheen of sweat. She offered Emily a shy smile as she spotted her sitting at the breakfast bar.

"How come we all feel like death warmed up and you're out jogging at the crack of dawn?" Sara frowned at her niece as Paige pulled a protein shake out of the fridge.  
"I've got youth on my side." Paige cracked with a smug grin. She hopped up on to the kitchen counter to drink her shake.  
"Emily's looking just as rough as us old timers." Sara pointed out petulantly.  
"I dunno, she looks pretty good to me." Paige's grin widened as Emily ducked her head and bit at her lip. "I actually tried to wake you up to come running with me. Remind me to never try that again."

"Why? What did I do?" Emily had a right to be worried. She wasn't a morning person. Her friends knew better than to try and rouse her. Once, she'd accidentally head butted Spencer when she'd been trying to wake her up after a sleepover.  
"Let's just say there was a headlock involved." Paige teased, making Emily blush even harder. She finished off her protein shake and dropped down from the counter. "I'm going to go shower." Paige headed upstairs, and Emily gave it a minute before following after her, telling the others she was going to get dressed. She walked in to Paige's room, just as the other girl was pulling her tank top up over her head.  
"Sorry." Emily looked away, flustered.

"No problem." Paige awkwardly pulled her top back down. The two girls stood facing each other in an uneasy silence. Paige hadn't been lying about trying to wake Emily up to go running , but she hadn't tried all that hard. Part of her had been happy to let Emily sleep, in an effort to avoid the very conversation they were about to have. "Look, about last night-" Emily didn't let her finish. Crossing the room in two purposeful strides, she cut her off with a kiss. Paige let out a surprised 'oh', before eagerly kissing her back. Her arms wrapped around Emily's waist, pulling her in closer as Emily cupped her cheeks.

"Good morning." Paige grinned as they pulled apart.  
"Morning." Emily beamed back, draping her arms around her neck as she leant in for another kiss. "Did I really put you in a headlock this morning?"  
"You did. I almost didn't make it out of bed." Paige laughed, amazed at how easy one kiss had made things between them. She ran her hands softly up and down Emily's arms. "We should probably talk about last night." Emily agreed with her. It was time to get everything out in the open. They moved over to Paige's bed, so they could both sit down.

Emily took hold of her hand before asking, "Did you mean what you said last night? About liking me..."  
"I meant every word." Paige answered sincerely. She looked down as her thumb caressed the back of Emily's hand. She swallowed hard, unsure of just how to let go of the words she had been keeping to herself for so long. "Nice turn. That was the first thing you ever said to me. We were both trying out for the swim team freshman year. I was so nervous before we got in the water, that I almost puked in the pool; but then you smiled at me...God, how could I resist a smile like that?" Paige was grinning like an idiot as she traced her thumb along the curve of Emily's mouth. She had never dared to imagine she would ever get so close to the other girl's lips. Paige had been barely fourteen when she'd first fallen for a girl. She hadn't been able to put her feelings in to words back then; but even if she had, 'gay' wouldn't have been one of them. It had taken Paige a long time to come to terms with her sexuality, and Emily couldn't begin to understand the part she'd played in helping her.

"I was jealous. That night in the Brew, when you were on your date with _Brandy..._I didn't want to admit it, but I was." Emily admitted with a sigh. She turned her head, pressing her lips against the palm of Paige's hand. "Just like I was jealous of Shana...could you gloat a little less?" Emily laughed as Paige's smug grin refused to budge.  
"Sorry, no can do." Paige rolled on to her back, pulling Emily on top of her so she could steal another kiss. "This smile is not leaving my face. Ever."  
"Really? Maybe I could try kissing it off?" Emily suggested with a giggle, and pressed her lips to the corner of Paige's mouth.  
"That could work."

* * *

"I've got it, mom!" Emily called out as she flew down the stairs to answer the door. Paige was standing on the other side, nervously playing with the strap of her bag. Her face lit up at the sight of Emily.  
"Hey." She greeted her with a smile, but not much else. It still hadn't sunk in that they were dating, that she could kiss her good morning whenever she felt like it. Luckily, Emily was quicker on the draw.  
"Come here." She tugged on one of the belt loops of Paige's jeans, pulling her in close as she draped her arms around her neck and kissed her. Paige was just getting in to the swing of it, pushing Emily back up against the door frame, as Pam walked out of the kitchen.  
"Good morning, Paige."  
"Hi, Mrs Fields!" Paige jumped back so fast that she almost stumbled back on to the porch. "Lovely morning, isn't it?" She rambled at the older woman as she nervously wrung her hands together. Emily couldn't help but laugh as she caught hold of one of her hands.

"It sure is." Pam agreed with a pleasant smile. Emily had already told her that she and Paige were dating, though even if she hadn't, it wouldn't have been any great surprise to find them kissing. "Are you girls heading in early for swim practise?"  
"Yeah, Paige has promised to put me through my paces."  
"Swimming." Paige quickly added. "Swimming...paces. We should probably get going." She'd been around Emily's mom a dozen times before, but her anxiety was getting the better of her.  
"Well I won't keep you. Oh, Paige, you're welcome to join us for dinner tonight. Emily's father's coming home, it would be nice for Wayne to meet you."  
"Okay. Sure. That'd be great...thank you." Paige was still rambling as Emily dragged her out of the door.

"What is with you?" Emily laughed at her girlfriend. She'd never seen the other girl so anxious.  
"I dunno. It's just, your mom caught us kissing and I got nervous; and it came out as word vomit... I'm sorry." Paige apologised as they climbed in to her car.  
"You don't have to apologise, maybe just try and calm down a little before dinner?"  
"I'll try." Paige agreed. "Best I can promise is that I _won't _throw up on your dad...maybe." They carried on laughing and joking all the way to school. Paige felt more like herself by the time they finally hit the pool. After a couple of laps she was on top form and putting Emily through her paces. She stopped by the side and carried on watching Emily go. They'd been working on tightening her turns for the Stanford scout.

"Are you perving on me again?" Emily teased as she noticed Paige had stopped following her. She pushed her goggles up on to her head as she waded back over to the side.  
"Always." Paige answered honestly. She was treading water as she pulled Emily in closer to kiss her. The other girl's lips were soft and wet, and they both swallowed too much water as their desperation to be near each other increased. Paige lost her footing on the side of the wall she'd been clinging to, and ended up almost dragging them both under. They wisely decided to take it out of the water. Paige pulled herself up first, then gave Emily a helping hand. Once the other girl was out of the water, she tugged her forward, pulling her on to her lap. They sat there for a while, making out on the deck by the side of the pool.

Paige was still amazed every time she got to touch the other girl, and kissing her was literally a dream come true. She brought the fingers of her left hand up to caress Emily's cheek, marvelling at the beautiful sight in front of her. "I feel like the luckiest person on the planet right now." She admitted with a soft sigh. "Between my Grandpa and my mom, it kind of felt like everything was going to hell, but then this happened... I haven't felt this happy in a long time."  
"Me either." Emily agreed, and it was the truth. It seemed like forever since she had felt so carefree. She should have been stressing about the upcoming swim meet, and about scouts and colleges. She was finding it hard to focus on anything other than Paige though.

They both jumped as they heard the heavy door from outside slam shut. "Ladies, no screwing around by the water." Fulton reprimanded them both, though she was wearing an amused smile as she headed for her office.  
"Sorry, Coach!" Paige called over shoulder. "Can we screw around in the locker room?"  
"Paige!" Emily playfully slapped at her arm as she buried her face in the crook of her neck, trying to hide her embarrassment.  
"As long as it's not by the water, or in my office, knock yourself out." The coach answered with a wry smile.  
"Come on, Fields. You heard the coach!" Paige got to her feet and dragged Emily up along with her, heading for the locker room. Emily dragged her feet, knowing that if she didn't remind Paige that it was almost time for class they'd never make it in time for the first bell.

"Have you...do your friends know about us?" Paige asked, seemingly out of the blue, as they changed out of their costumes and back in to their street clothes.  
"I told Hanna last night. I hope that's okay? I mean, I know thing s are pretty new right now. If you want to keep this quiet-"  
"Are you kidding me? I want to get up on the roof with a megaphone!" Paige smirked.  
"Well, I _did _tell Hanna. That's practically the same thing." Emily pointed out as she pulled on her shirt and tied back her hair. "I said I'd meet her for coffee before the first bell. Want to come with?"  
"Sure. I could use a caffeine fix right about now."

They made their way to the quad, hand in hand, and found Hanna sitting at one of the tables. "Oh my god, you guys are so cute!" The blonde squealed as she jumped to her feet and threw her arms around both of them. "It's about damn time you got your shit together!"  
"Thanks, Hanna." Emily rolled her eyes at her friend.  
"There's Sean, I need to see him about some notes for History. I'll be right back." Paige gave Emily a quick kiss as she excused herself. Hanna was staring at the two of them like they were a circus act and it was starting to creep her out.

"Did I just see Paige McCullers kissing you?" Spencer demanded as she and Aria joined their other friends at the table in the quad.  
"They're dating now!" Hanna announced gleefully.  
"I would have told you guys, but I had the worst hangover of my life Sunday. I got home late and just went straight to bed. Hanna only knows about us because she wouldn't stop calling me Sunday night."  
"I needed the gossip! I knew there was no way Paige would be able to resist you in that dress you were wearing Saturday night!"  
"Please, Emily could be wearing a sack and McCullers would still be making goo-goo eyes at her." Spencer teased.

"I think it's cute." Aria piped up. "Emily deserves a little happiness."  
"Thanks guys." Emily was grinning like a Cheshire cat as she glanced over at Paige. Her new girlfriend was sitting with Sean Ackard, looking over his notes for a History class they shared. She caught Emily looking her way, and ducked her head as she offered her a bashful smile in return.

* * *

"Remember, don't be nervous. My dad's great, you'll love him." Emily gave Paige's hand a reassuring squeeze, before leading her inside the house to meet her dad. Her mom hadn't made that much of an effort when Emily had been dating Maya, mostly because the two of them had clashed like chalk and cheese. Pam had still been adjusting to the news that her daughter was gay back then too. It would have been hard for her to like any girl that Emily was dating. She had come a long way since then though, and Emily was grateful for that. She wasn't too worried about dinner, even if Paige was.

"Emmy, is that you?" Wayne heard the front door opening and popped his head out of the living room with a smile. It had been a couple of months since he'd been home from the base in Texas. His daughter welcomed him back with a crushing hug as her new girlfriend hung awkwardly back. "And you must be Paige?" Wayne kept one arm slung around Emily's shoulder as he offered his free hand for Paige to shake.  
"Nice to meet you, sir. You have a lovely home, and daughter...and wife."  
"Paige, let's go upstairs until dinner's ready." Emily laughed as she pulled away from her dad and took hold of Paige's arm again. The other girl gladly agreed to follow.

"You have a lovely wife?" Emily cracked up laughing once they were on their own in her room.  
"I panicked!" Paige huffed indignantly. "I couldn't think of anything to say! All I could think about was whether or not he brings any guns home with him!"  
"Mom doesn't let him keep any in the house. There's a rifle in the garage, but you'd have at least a thirty second head start while he opened the safe."  
"Good to know." Paige shot her an amused look as she started pulling papers out of her backpack. She was looking for something in particular, but it was right at the bottom of her bag. "I've got something for you. It came this morning, and I thought you'd want to check it out." Paige handed over a printed prospectus for Stanford.

"I know you weren't really considering them before the scout approached you, but their swim team is amazing. It's a fantastic school, and it's a great opportunity! And I'm totally not bias at all." Paige grinned as she made herself comfortable on Emily's bed. The other girl curled up beside her, resting her head on her lap as she leafed through the college prospectus.  
"Have you always wanted to go to Stanford?" Emily mused, impressed by what she was reading.  
"Yeah, I did. My parents both went there, that's where they met." Paige tensed a little as she brought up her parents, but if her mom was still bothering her then she didn't mention it. "My dad and I drove there one summer a couple of years back. We walked around the campus. It's even better than in the pictures."

Paige's enthusiasm was infectious, and Emily found herself being swept along with it as she looked back up at her. "We should go visit sometime...I mean, if I impress that scout at the next meet."  
"How could you possibly fail to impress him?" Paige asked. She sounded completely sincere, as she stared down at the other girl in awe. "You're the most impressive person I've ever met. Stanford would be _lucky _to have you...I know I am."  
"Let's just do it." Emily was grinning as she turned right around to face her. She had only been half considering college in California, but the more she heard Paige talking about it, the more she wanted it. "Let's drive to Stanford one weekend. Just you and me."

"You know that's like a day and a half's driving right? And that's if we don't stop."  
"We could go over Spring Break? It's only, what, two months away? The swim season will be over, and I'll know for sure whether Stanford are really interested in me by then."  
"It's a date." Paige agreed, barely able to contain her excitement as she cupped Emily's cheeks, and sealed the deal with a kiss. She wanted Emily at Stanford with her. She wanted them to be able to plan a future together; one where they would at least both be going to school in the same state.


	21. Chapter 21

"Come on, Princess! You're going to have to be faster than that to beat me." Paige grinned as she goaded her girlfriend from the edge of the pool. She was sitting on one of the starting blocks, with her legs dangling over the side and a stopwatch in her hands. Emily acknowledged her comments with an extra big splash as she turned and started on another lap. They'd stayed behind after practise, both wanting to put in the extra time in the water. Emily was determined to bring her times down, in a bid to impress the Stanford scout in the upcoming swim meet. It had been a fortnight since they'd finally gotten together, and they'd spent most of their free time training in the pool.

Emily put in a few more laps before calling it a day. She was supposed to be meeting her friends at Spencer's house for dinner. The four of them were all so busy with their significant others that they'd barely spent any time together lately. They'd agreed to a girl's night, without their boyfriends. Emily was the only one who could get around the 'no boys allowed rule'. She brought it up while she and Paige were changing. "Are you busy tonight? Please say no; that way you can come with me to Spencer's house for dinner."

"Sorry. I've kind of got plans." Paige apologised. It wasn't often that she said no to her girlfriend; but then Emily had never asked her to spend time with her friends before. She wasn't about to give up so easily.  
"Come on, please? I really want you to get to know my friends. I know you know Hanna and Caleb, but Spence and Aria are really great too-"  
"Em, slow down." Paige caught hold of her hands, mostly to stop her from waving them around quite so much. "I would _love_ to have dinner with you and your friends tonight, but I can't. I'm meeting with my Grandfather's attorney, for the reading of his will."

"Oh...Oh god. Paige, I'm so sorry! You're dealing with that all of that, and here I am rambling on about dinner with my friends." It was Emily's turn to apologise to her girlfriend.  
"It's fine. It's no big deal." Paige tried to reassure her as she let go of Emily's hands and started doing up the buttons of her shirt. Her fingers were shaking so bad that she ended up buttoning it up wrong.  
"Is your mom going to be there?" Emily had to ask, even though she could guess the answer. She set about helping her with her shirt.  
"Probably. She's tried calling a few times. Dad hasn't let her near the house. We're hoping she won't stick around long after the will has been read. She'll be gone once she gets her pound of flesh."

"You're not tempted to see her?" Emily knew there was a lot of history there, but she couldn't ever imagine not wanting to see her own mom. She watched as Paige shifted uncomfortably. Part of her wished she'd never asked. Paige was already hurting enough without Emily asking her stupid questions.  
"I was. When I was five. When I was nine. When I was twelve...She's been in and out of my life so many times, that I finally just reached a point where I stopped wanting her to come back. I just wanted her to stay gone."  
"I'm sorry." Emily moved in for a hug. She knew it wasn't much, but it was all she had to offer. For Paige, it was more than enough.

"How do you do that?" She sighed as she pressed her lips to Emily's and wrapped her arms around her waist.  
"Do what?" Emily mumbled back, without breaking the kiss.  
"Make everything feel like it's going to be okay." Paige answered, almost breathlessly. She shook her head with a small smile. "You're like my own personal sunrise. No matter how dark it gets, I know the sun's got to come up eventually."  
"Has anyone ever told you you're ridiculously sweet?" Emily grinned as she laced their fingers together.  
"Yes. As a matter of fact, my totally hot girlfriend tells me that all the time." Paige laughed. She claimed another kiss from her, before throwing her bag over her shoulder and checking her watch. "I got to go. You know how my dad gets about being late. He's probably freaking out as we speak. I'll call you later though; and we'll have dinner with your friends soon. I promise."

Paige got the lecture she was expecting when she arrived home late. Her father cut it short though, since he didn't want them to be late for actually meeting with the attorney. Paige's grandfather had lived in Brookhaven, the next town over from Rosewood. That's where his attorney was based too, so they had to drive over in Nick's car. It was only an hour's drive, but the journey was a tedious one. Nick kept trying to make small talk, but Paige wasn't in the mood. She was dreading seeing her mom again. Despite what she'd told Emily in the locker room, she could only turn her mom down so many times. The woman was like a virus, slowly wearing down her defences. It was only a matter of time before she broke down and agreed to speak to her. Paige was just hoping she would up and leave town before that happened.

"Claire." Nick greeted his ex wife with a curt nod as he and Paige met her outside the attorney's office.  
"Nicholas." She nodded back, blowing out a cloud of smoke. She stubbed out her cigarette, ignoring the disapproving looks she was getting. "A girl's got to have one vice, right Paigey?"  
"Don't call me that." Paige glared back at her. "In fact, just don't talk to me period." She shoved past her mother, heading inside. Claire went to follow her, but Nick caught her arm in a crushing grip.  
"After today, you leave. You leave and you don't come back in to my daughter's life. Ever! Is that clear?"  
"She's my daughter too, Nick." She wrenched her arm free, glaring at her ex in a way that reminded him all too much of Paige.  
"Only by blood."

It was stiflingly hot inside the lawyer's office. There were only two leather bound chairs in front of the old man's desk. Paige and her mom sat, while Nick stood behind them, his hand resting on his daughter's shoulder. The man behind the desk was almost as old as her grandfather had been. He was almost bald, save for a tuft of pure white hair at the very back of his head. Paige couldn't see the point in it. She would have cut it; if she were a seventy year old man with only a small patch of hair left. He shuffled some papers and cleared his throat, the sound filling the otherwise silent room. He started by offering his condolences; he'd known Paige's grandfather a long time. After that, he covered a load of legal mumbo-jumbo. Paige was mostly just blocking it out, waiting for it all to be over. Maybe if she got back in time, she could drop in on Emily and her friends.

"What?" Claire suddenly shouted out, pulling Paige back out of her daze. "That can't be right!" Paige blinked as she felt her father squeezing her shoulder. She'd missed whatever her mother's outburst was all about. The attorney looked flustered as he adjusted his glasses.  
"Ms McCullers, I assure you, your father's will was up to date at the time of his passing. He made his intentions clear to me, not six weeks before his death. Your daughter is to inherit everything."

* * *

"I hope Paige is doing okay. I tried calling her, but her phone's off." Emily sighed. She'd been preoccupied by thoughts of her girlfriend all evening. Her friends had noticed.  
"I'm sure she'll call you the second she can." Spencer was going for reassuring, but it came out more condescending. Everything she'd heard come out of her friend's mouth, for weeks, had been about Paige McCullers.  
"Spencer's right. She'll call you if she needs you." Aria managed to sound more sincere as she patted Emily's knee. The four friends were littered around Spencer's living room, with Emily and Aria curled up on one sofa and Spence and Hanna on the other. There was some trashy reality show playing on the TV, which Hanna had insisted they watch. Emily had barely caught a word of it.

"She'll call you if she needs _something._ Am I right?" Hanna tried wiggling her eyebrows suggestively, but she failed miserably at it, so she shot Emily a wink instead.  
"Are you suffering some kind of stroke?" Spencer frowned beside her.  
"I was winking at Em!" The blonde huffed.  
"Why?" Emily was pretty sure she'd chosen the wrong time to start listening.  
"Never mind." Hanna rolled her eyes. She didn't have it in her to repeat herself. Tact was out of the question too. "Are you and Paige doing it, or what?"  
"What? No, we haven't...It's only been a few weeks. I don't want to rush it."  
"I'm pretty sure nobody could accuse you and Paige of rushing anything." Hanna was all too happy to point out, with a smirk. "It'll be a miracle if you two do it before graduation!"

"Shut up, Hanna! We're going to...I mean, I want to. Trust me, I _really_ want to." Emily looked a little flustered as she realised how that had just sounded.  
"Someone's frustrated." Spencer teased. It was rare they ever got Emily to talk about that kind of stuff. Even when she'd been dating Maya, she'd kept everything close to her chest, refusing to talk about their sex life. Emily rolled her eyes at her friends as they all started getting in on the act, teasing her about Paige.  
"We're training every day right now, and it's driving me crazy trying not to look at her while we're changing!"  
"Are you kidding me? You guys are going out, _looking_ is one of the basic perks." Hanna shook her head in disbelief. "Seriously, Em, you two need to kick it up a gear!"

"Han, Paige is...here." Emily jumped up as she noticed Paige's dad's car pulling in to the Hastings drive. She'd asked her to come by if she was feeling up to it after meeting with the attorney. Emily lost her smile as she noticed Paige climbing out of the passenger side. Nick had been driving. He locked the car behind him as they made their way up the drive. Spencer headed to the door, but her mother beat her to it. She'd been working on her laptop in the kitchen, so she'd obviously been expecting the McCullers if she was getting the door before they'd even made it up the drive.  
"Nick, come on in." She ushered Nick inside. Paige followed her father in. Her expression was blank and her eyes were glazed over. She looked like she'd been crying. She was so out of it she didn't even notice her girlfriend at first.

"Paige?" Emily walked up to her, full of concern. "What's wrong? Has something happened?"  
"Paige, why don't you stay here with your friends. I'll go speak to Veronica." Nick gave his daughter's shoulder a squeeze, before following Veronica in to the kitchen. Paige was still in some kind of daze as Emily guided her over to the sofa. Aria scooted over, letting the other two girls sit down beside her.

"What's happened?" Emily asked again. She didn't want to rush Paige, but she couldn't help her if she didn't know what the problem was. "Is it your mom?" Paige nodded, her gaze fixed on her hands. They were resting on her knees and shaking. Emily started rubbing her back. She had a feeling Paige would be losing it if the others weren't there to see.  
"I got everything...My grandpa, he left everything to me." Emily wasn't sure what to say to that. 'Congratulations' just didn't seem appropriate. "He left me the house, his truck, some money in a trust fund...and my mom went nuclear. She's contesting the will. That's why we're here, so my dad can get some advice from Mrs Hastings."

"Do you want us to leave you guys alone?" Aria suggested from beside Paige, feeling a little uncomfortable. Besides Hanna, none of them really knew Emily's girlfriend all that well. It didn't seem right to be sitting there listening to her private business.  
"No, no it's fine." Paige shook her head, she hadn't meant to intrude on their evening. With everything that had gone on at the attorney's office, she'd actually forgotten Emily was going to be at Spencer's house. "It's not exactly a town secret that my mom's not going to win any mother of the year awards."

"Does she have grounds to contest the will?" Spencer asked. Emily shot her a harsh glare for her trouble.  
"Not helping, Spence!"  
"I don't care." Paige shook her head in dismay. "She can have it all. I don't want any of it."  
"Ice cream!" Spencer announced suddenly, making Hanna jump beside her. "You want ice cream! Come on." She got to her feet and took hold of Paige's hand, pulling her in to the kitchen while Emily looked on in amusement. Spencer was trying her best to be helpful. Nick and Veronica were upstairs in the study, so the girls had the kitchen to themselves. Spencer sat Paige down at the table and started listing off the various flavours of ice cream they had in the freezer.

Paige managed a weak smile as Emily stood beside her, idly playing with the end of her braid. Paige's head was thumping. There was a dull ache starting behind her left eye, and it was spreading out across her forehead. She thought about pulling out her braid, to try and ease some of the pressure at the back of her skull, but Emily was already way ahead of her. Her fingers were deftly undoing Paige's braid, and running themselves through her hair. Emily had a way of knowing what she needed without Paige even having to ask. She loved that about her.

She turned her head, pressing her face up against Emily's stomach as she wrapped her arms around her waist. Emily bent down to press her lips to the top of her head. When they both looked up again, they found Emily's friends staring at them. "You guys are so cute." Aria beamed. Paige blushed as she ducked her head. She wasn't usually the type for public displays of affection. It felt nice to be around Emily and her friends. It was helping to take Paige's mind off of her mom. She had known there had to be a reason why Claire was still hanging around town after the funeral, trying to get Paige to agree to see her. Now she knew. It was all about the money.


End file.
